


Magic of Mistletoe

by lisawolfe80



Category: Veronica Mars (TV), Veronica Mars - All Media Types
Genre: A Veronica Mars Fandom Family Christmas Collection 2016, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-23
Updated: 2016-12-25
Packaged: 2018-09-11 06:57:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 22,868
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8964364
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lisawolfe80/pseuds/lisawolfe80
Summary: Created for A Veronica Mars Fandom Family Christmas Collection 2016 - Not Movie Compliant





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Bondopoulos](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bondopoulos/gifts).



> This idea for a LoVe Christmas story ended up being much bigger than I’d initially planned (like most of my stories!) so I’m breaking it up into two chapters. The second one is almost finished, so you all won’t have to wait too long for part 2. Wishing you all a happy holiday season!   
> Dedicated to Bondopoulos for always being a wonderful beta and friend! 
> 
> Disclaimer: All original VM characters belong to Rob Thomas.

To the average passerby, Veronica Mars would have appeared to be a dedicated employee, happily doing her job. She smiled gleefully at each and every customer or coworker who made eye-contact with her as she toiled away. Of course, things aren’t always as they appear. 

It had taken Veronica less than five minutes on the job to realize that adopting her Amber persona was the only way to endure her chosen fate, and she was determined to keep it up until the end. But now, only three days into her own personal holiday hell, she was starting to doubt her resilience.

As she folded the same table of sweaters for the sixth time that afternoon—idiotic smile firmly in place—internally she was contemplating whether she could somehow sneak into the main office and steal all of their christmas CDs.  _ If I only ‘relocated’ them to some other, perhaps hidden, location in the store, would that actually count as a crime? Surely there must be some non-holiday music they can play instead, isn’t there? I seriously doubt shoppers would spend less money just because they aren’t being bombarded by sappy holiday tunes. I might even be saving their sanity. It would almost be a public service. _

“Nice stacks,” a chirpy female voice sang out as a gentle hipcheck knocked Veronica slightly off balance. Morgan, who stood almost a foot taller than Veronica, had a devilishly smooth grin on her face. “Sooo… Missy from jewelry, Darren from shoes and I were talking about going out for drinks tonight when we get off work. You in?”

“Maybe,” Veronica replied with little conviction as she reached for another sweater to fold. 

Morgan let out a deep sigh and shook her head. “You know you could just say no, rather than try to pretend that you might be interested. It really wouldn’t hurt my feelings.”

“But then I’d have to endure you trying to change my mind for the next...” Veronica checked her watch, “two hours. This way is much more efficient for both of us,” Veronica teased.

“I  _ can  _ take no for an answer,” Morgan protested. Her pout only lasted for about two seconds before she cracked another smile. “Okay, you’re right… I probably wouldn’t have.”

“I will think about it this time, okay?” Veronica relented. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to hang out with Morgan. There were just other things she wanted to spend her limited free time doing.

“ _ Sure _ you will,” Morgan countered with an edge of sarcasm. “Sandra said that the fitting rooms are starting to overflow again. Would you rather have fitting room or folding duty?”

“Like you even have to ask!” Veronica scoffed enthusiastically as she shoved the half-folded sweater she was holding at Morgan. Veronica had quickly learned that if you had an arm full of clothes to be returned, customers typically looked for someone less busy to ask for assistance. Veronica also appreciated that Morgan seemed to look out for her as much as she did.

After Veronica had finished her FBI internship, she’d realized she really didn’t want to go back to Hearst. It had been so refreshing to be in a new city where no one knew your past—or seen your  _ alleged  _ sex tape. The last few weeks of her freshman year really hadn’t gotten any better with even more taunting and awkwardness, so she had decided not to go back. Staying in Virginia wasn’t really an option, though, so instead she transferred to Berkeley. She’d initially been a little disheartened on her first day of classes to be asked the dreaded, “aren’t you Veronica Mars?” question by a girl she didn’t recognize. She’d considered lying for a second before she decided that might not be the best idea since they were both walking into the same class.  Veronica had hesitantly nodded in confirmation. “I thought so! I’m Morgan. I went to Pan. You’re kind of a legend there.”

“A legend?” Veronica had replied, unsure whether to be scared or proud. 

“Oh yeah, after you saved our mascot, there was a big article about you in the school paper,” the girl explained. 

_ Proud, it is, _ Veronica had thought. 

The two of them had quickly become good friends over the rest of the term, and when classes were winding down, they’d begun talking about what their plans were for the long holiday break. Morgan’s aunt was an HR manager at the Dillard’s department store at a large mall near Pan High, and Morgan offered to help Veronica get a position there if she wanted to earn some money. While it had sounded like a good idea at the time, Veronica was starting to regret it with every christmas-song-filled second that ticked by. 

As Veronica neared the fitting rooms, she wasn’t surprised to hear what sounded like a new dad shushing a fussy baby. There were several plush chairs in the fitting room area for waiting customers to use, and as she turned the corner into the fitting room she could finally see the slightly overwhelmed sounding father. Even though his face was turned away from her as he attended to the unhappy very small infant in his arms, she could still make out his profile. She immediately froze in place; she could barely breath. There was no mistaking his identity. Her mind immediately started doing pregnancy math.  _ December minus nine… maybe ten? So...February? Sandy blonde hair? Parker?  _ Suddenly the greasy burger she’d scarfed down on her lunch break threatened to make an unwelcome reappearance. Veronica had barely spoken to Mac or Wallace since she’d decided to go to Berkeley. No one had dared mention Logan, let alone Parker, or the two of them together since she’d left.  _ Did Logan get Parker pregnant? Wouldn't someone have been brave enough to tell me?  _ Suddenly she had an eerie flashback to Parker looking at her almost the same way Meg had.  _ How had I not pieced that together? _

She was still frozen in place as one of the fitting room doors flew open. Veronica held her breath, waiting for the occupant to walk out. She exhaled slowly when she realized it wasn’t Parker, but rather a barely teenage girl. The girl was looking at Logan as she came out and spun in a slow circle, showing off the fancy dress she was trying on.

“How about this one?” the tween asked as she twirled, but then she must have noticed Veronica and stopped. After a second, a broad grin broke out across her face. Out of the corner of her eye, Veronica could also tell that Logan had started to turn in her direction, but she kept staring at the girl because this really wasn’t something she wanted to deal with.  _ He’s not a T. rex, Veronica. Standing still isn’t going to make you invisible. _

“ _ Veronica _ ?” It was easy to hear the disbelief in his tone without even needing to look at his expression.

Veronica sucked in a steadying breath and turned to face him. “Hi, Logan,” she muttered out with a small wave, nervously making eye contact with him before she glanced back at the girl who was still beaming at her. Veronica’s initial shock of seeing Logan there with a baby was suddenly replaced with a sense of d _ éjà _ vu as she realized she’d seen this girl before—with him. Veronica looked inquisitively at the girl until she finally placed her. “You’re the girl from the elevator… the one wearing my shirt?”

The young girl nodded enthusiastically and squeaked a little in excitement. 

“I uh… I didn’t know you were  _ back _ ,” Logan mumbled, drawing Veronica’s attention back to him. She watched as he deftly shifted the baby from lying in his arms to resting against his chest, and started rubbing small soothing circles on its back. 

“Yeah… for the holiday break,” Veronica replied as she managed somewhat of a smile. She certainly couldn’t channel Amber at a time like this. Suddenly remembering why she was there in the first place, Veronica somehow found the will to power her feet again.  She set off briskly to the overflowing return rack. “Nice to see you, but I’ve got to get all these clothes put away,” Veronica mumbled as she grabbed an armful of the garments and turned back in the direction she’d come from. 

She’d only gotten a few steps out of the fitting room area when she heard what had to have been the young girl saying ‘ _ well don’t just sit there _ ’. Veronica cringed and picked up her pace, hoping she could disappear into the sea of shoppers and clothing racks. She definitely planned to send Morgan back to the fitting rooms when she bumped into her again.  _ That offer to get drinks after work doesn’t sound so bad now. _

“Veronica, wait,” Logan’s voice sounded a few feet behind her. 

“I’m not here to socialize, Logan. I do need to put these clothes away.” She found herself snapping at him even though she knew she didn’t have any right to. She’d been the one who told him that he was out of her life forever. Even after his valiant attempt to redeem himself by beating up Gory Sorokin, she’d refused to talk to him before she’d left for Virginia. 

“I can walk and talk,” Logan countered as he looked adamantly at her. “Feel free to go about doing whatever you need to do.”

Veronica let out a frustrated sigh. “I’m sure the chairs are more comfortable… especially with…” She gestured with her free hand at the baby that he was still holding against his chest. 

“He’s actually happier being walked around,” Logan informed her, sounding a little defiant.

“Fine,” she replied and spun on her heel, heading to a back corner of the women’s department. She wasn’t actually sure where she needed to go to put the clothes she was carrying away, but she figured that if she kept moving, he might give up and just head back to the fitting rooms. She also thought it best to head in the opposite direction of where she knew Morgan was, because she really didn’t want to have to explain to her why some guy—carrying a baby—was following her around.

She could hear Logan walking beside her and realized that at least he was right about the baby liking to be walked—the fussing from the fitting room had stopped. 

“I um… I think that skirt goes there,” Logan mumbled, sounding a bit sullen. 

Veronica glanced down at the bright floral skirt she was carrying and sighed. Of course he was paying better attention to what she was supposed to be doing than she was.  

“Thanks,” she muttered begrudgedly as she made space for the skirt in the correct place on the rack.

She heard him let out a deep sigh, so she turned to look at him. “Look, I just wanted to say it’s really great to see you, Veronica… I don’t want to make you angry though, so I’ll just head back to the dressing rooms. I’m sure we’ll be there for a while, so if you change your mind and want to catch up for a few minutes and can  _ squeeze  _ it in, you know where to find me.” His lip quirked up in a sad half-smile before he turned and walked away.

Veronica fidgeted with the hangers in her hand as she watched him retreat back to the safety of the fitting rooms.  _ Could you have been a bigger bitch, Veronica?  _ She bit on the edge of her lip for a moment contemplating what to do. Her internal struggle was interrupted by a middle-aged woman asking her if she knew where to find more of the silk blouses that Veronica was holding in her arms. Veronica nodded and led her in the right direction.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Since Veronica had only grabbed a relatively small batch of clothes in her hasty retreat from the fitting rooms, it didn’t take very long for her to put them all where they belonged. By the time she’d finished, she decided that avoiding Logan was pretty immature. And Veronica Mars was no coward. So instead of swapping with Morgan, she headed back to get another batch of clothes to return. As Veronica approached the entrance to the fitting rooms, she noticed right away that Logan was nervously bouncing his leg. She almost smiled at how familiar the gesture was. As she walked in she could also see that the girl that had been twirling in the dress before was slouched in a chair next to Logan now. The girl sat up a bit straighter and smiled at Veronica when she spotted her.

“Hi, I’m Heather,” the girl announced gleefully. “We’ve never been introduced before,” she added as she kicked Logan’s foot with her own.

“Hi... I’m Veronica,” Veronica replied, feeling a little less uncomfortable than the first time she’d walked in, but still very on edge. She suddenly realized that Logan wasn’t holding the baby anymore. “What happened to…” she asked, trailing off as she gestured toward his arms where the baby had been before.  _ I’m positive that wasn’t just a hallucination _ .

“He’s having a  _ snack _ ,” Logan replied as he gestured with his head to one of the closed fitting room doors.

“Oh….” Veronica replied in understanding and nodded. Before either of them had a chance to say anything else, the door that Logan had pointed to opened. Veronica braced herself for the arduous task of congratulating Parker, but was thrown off when a different young woman walked out carrying the baby. She was about the same height as Parker, but had darker hair with some blonde highlights. Veronica would have guessed she was the same age as they were, but the mom before her looked a bit more weary and tired than someone so young. _ Ah, the joys of motherhood. _

“He should be less fussy now,” the woman Veronica didn’t recognize said as she handed the baby off to Logan. 

“All better, champ?” Logan asked softly as he carefully settled the baby back into his arms.  

Veronica looked between Logan and the woman, wondering if he planned to introduce her or not. Given that he was focused on the baby again, she decided she’d be polite, even if she was less than thrilled about the situation. “Hi, I’m Veronica,” she said with a semi-friendly smile.

“Oh, hi…” the young woman said, sounding a bit confused. She glanced at Veronica’s name tag for a moment. “I have a few things you can take back,” she added before disappearing into the fitting room. A few seconds later she came back out with an armful of stuff. “Thanks,” she said before turning and disappearing into the small room again, locking the door behind her.

“That’s my sister,” Heather explained as she rolled her eyes slightly. 

“Oh right… sorry,” Logan interjected looking back up at Veronica. “That’s Melinda.”

“Ooo-kay,” Veronica replied feeling a little unsure of herself again.

“Hey… you should come ice skating with us,” Heather blurted out excitedly as she looked between Logan and Veronica with a huge grin on her face. 

“Ice skating?” Veronica asked, thrown completely off guard.

“Yeah… Logan’s taking me ice skating later, and you could come too.” The ebullience the girl was exhibiting reminded Veronica of when she asked Backup if he wanted to go for walk. 

Veronica narrowed her eyes and looked questioningly at Logan. He appeared to be almost as surprised as she was by Heather’s suggestion, but he recovered with a quick smile and nodded. 

“There’s a new rink that just opened for the holidays,” Heather continued, perhaps sensing Veronica’s hesitation. “It’ll be super fun.” 

If the girl had actually had a tail, Veronica was certain it would be wagging back and forth wildly at that point.

“I don’t think so,” Veronica replied, definitely not wanting to endure more awkwardness with Logan and his girlfriend— _ wife _ ?—whatever she was, and their baby.

“It would be nice to catch up… if you don’t have plans,” Logan interjected.

“Well, it does look like you have _a_ _lot_ to share,” Veronica said a bit more pointedly than she intended as she glanced down at the baby again and then back at Logan.

A slightly horrified look formed on Logan’s face as his eyes opened wide and he glanced quickly at the baby and then back at Veronica. “Oh... no, no, no… he’s not mine,” Logan blurted out.  

Veronica squished her face up questioningly. 

“I’m just helping Melinda out so she could do some shopping. He’s actually Dick’s,” Logan continued to explain quickly. “Dick’s been—not so reliably helpful, which I’m sure is not really surprising.” He paused for a second and took a deep breath. “Oh God, you thought…. No wonder… I’m sorry… I should have mentioned that earlier… I was just so shocked to run into you here.”

Veronica happened to glance at Heather, who had leaned in slightly with no effort to disguise her interest in the conversation. She kept looking back and forth between the two of them. “So you’ll come?” Heather tried again, enthusiastic smile never faltering.

“I don’t know,” Veronica replied, still trying to process what exactly was going on. 

“I’m taking the girls to dinner after shopping… you’re welcome to come with us for that if you’d rather… if you’re off work soon, that is,” Logan offered. 

“I um… I still have about two hours left…” Veronica found herself responding, not quite sure what to make of his offer. 

“You could still go ice skating with us,” Heather told her. Veronica had to hand it to the girl, she was more persistent than even Morgan, and that was saying something. 

“No pressure… the rink is easy to find right off Crown Valley about three miles east of here,” Logan explained. “If you decide you want to stop by and catch up, we’ll be there by the time you’re off work. And if not… well, it was really great to see you. Hopefully we’ll bump into you again before you go back to school.”

Veronica tilted her head slightly as she wondered about his last comment.

“We come here a lot,” Heather added in explanation. 

Logan smiled a bit smugly and nodded in agreement. “Every time Heather beats me at a video game competition, I let her pick out a new outfit, so we do end up here a  _ lot _ ,” he explained, looking a bit more pleased by the prospect than Veronica would have imagined. “So if you don’t feel like joining us tonight, I’m sure we’ll probably see you again.”

“We’ll see,” Veronica said with an uncertain smile. “I really should get back to putting clothes away,” she added as she grabbed a few more items off the rack to add to Melinda’s and then headed back out to the sales floor.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 

“Ice skating was fun, too bad you didn’t come by.” 

Veronica cringed slightly before turning to where the perky young feminine voice had come from. She’d expected to see a brooding, if not at least slightly sullen, Logan also in the vicinity and was surprised when it was just Heather. Veronica quickly glanced around but didn’t spot him anywhere.

“Logan’s not here…. if that’s who you’re looking for,” Heather commented with a mischievous grin.  

Veronica shrugged and picked up another rumpled sweater to fold. She certainly didn’t want to admit that was precisely who she’d been looking for.  She focused her attention instead on the garment in her hand, glancing briefly at the other unfolded ones littering the display table.  _ Do these things just spontaneously unfold themselves? _

“I know he didn’t want to act like it, but I could tell Logan was bummed you didn’t stop by last night.” Heather paused for a second and chuckled before she continued. “Although with how uncoordinated he ended up being on ice skates, it was probably good that you weren’t there to see him look like an idiot.”

Veronica couldn’t help smirking slightly at the mental image. Logan was always so graceful in practically every other circumstance that seeing him stumble around the rink would have been amusing.

“Maybe you can come next time,” Heather continued with an unfaltering smile. “See you later,” she added with a quick wave before she headed in the direction of the entrance that led out to the mall.

Veronica frowned slightly as she watched Heather go. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to talk to Logan, but she was only going to be home for about four weeks, and dredging up all their old baggage was not how she wanted to spend her holiday break. One of the pros that she’d considered when agreeing to work at Dillard’s was that most people who lived in Neptune, particularly the elite 09ers,  _ never  _ made the thirty minute drive to shop there. There were much better options closer to Neptune. She’d never really expected to run into someone she knew there, let alone Logan. Seeing him had thrown her completely off balance and so she’d headed home as soon as her shift had ended. She’d at least been a little more prepared to see him a second time since they had warned her that they shopped there a lot. As she watched Heather walk off, she unexpectedly realized that she was a little disappointed he hadn’t been there with her.     

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 

“Ready for your dinner break?” Morgan asked as Veronica finished hanging the last dress she’d recovered from the fitting rooms.  

“When am I  _ not  _ ready for food?” Veronica replied with a devilish grin. 

Morgan chuckled as she nodded in agreement. “We missed you at the bar last night. Darren’s friend who works at the techy place in the mall joined us. I think the two of you would totally hit it off. You should head down there on your break and check him out. Just ask for Camden.” 

“Oh, I don’t think—we’re only here for a few weeks. I certainly didn’t plan on meeting anyone new while I’m here,” Veronica stuttered out. 

Morgan laughed and shook her head at Veronica. “What’s wrong with a little holiday fling, Veronica? I know you’re all serious about studying at school—no time for relationships or dating—but there’s nothing wrong with enjoying yourself during the break. And if you’re both working here, there’s lots of opportunities for clandestine rendezvous. I could point out all the best secret spots to fool around in the mall and not get caught. This isn’t my first rodeo, you know.”

Veronica rolled her eyes at Morgan. “I went on a couple of dates at school.”

“ _ Study _ dates don’t count, Veronica,” Morgan chastised.

“Well they  _ do  _ in my book,” Veronica replied with a huff. “Promise me you aren’t going to send Camden here to find me?”

Morgan scrunched her face up slightly. “I may have mentioned you and subtly suggested he should stop by to meet you sometime.”

“Great,” Veronica replied with a cringe. Morgan shrugged and gave her a slightly apologetic smile. “I’ll be back in forty-five minutes,” Veronica added as she shook her head and started walking out toward the mall’s food court. 

It had been about an hour since Veronica had seen Heather, and thoughts of Logan kept popping into her head as she worked. She hadn’t expected to be disappointed when Heather showed up without him, but she couldn’t really deny that she was. She even caught herself scanning the crowd a few times as she waited for her food to be ready, but of course she didn’t see him or even Heather again.

She was relieved to spot an open table in a less busy part of the food court once her food was ready. It was late enough in the day that the mall was really starting to fill up with holiday shoppers and most of them seemed to eat at the mall, rather than dining elsewhere. At least the food court offered lots of options, so she didn’t have to get too worried about getting bored with her food choices. She glanced absentmindedly at her phone as she poked at the pad thai on her plate.. 

“Mind if I join you?” an all too familiar voice asked unexpectedly.

Veronica couldn’t help but smile as she glanced up; happy to see the warm brown eyes she’d been thinking of earlier staring back at her. 

“I don’t want to intrude if you want to eat your dinner in peace,” Logan added when she didn’t answer immediately. She watched as he nervously stuck his hands into his front pockets and furrowed his brow slightly. 

“It’s fine,” Veronica replied as she gave him a warm smile and gestured to the open seat across from her. She glanced around for a second and then narrowed her eyes slightly at him. “No  _ sidekick _ ? I saw her earlier.”

Logan smirked and shrugged slightly. “She’s in the arcade,” he explained as he pointed across the food court. “I saw you walk by and thought I’d sneak over to say hi.”

“I hope you didn’t lose your spot in line to play Pac-man just to come over and talk to little ole me,” Veronica teased. 

Logan chuckled and shook his head. “Nope… it was Donkey Kong.”

After they both chuckled at his quip, they sat there in an awkward silence for several seconds. 

“Sorry—” they both finally blurted out at exactly the same time, stopping abruptly as they did.

“Ladies first,” Logan mumbled as he gestured with his hand in her direction.

“I was just going to say that I was sorry I couldn’t make it last night. I was so tired after working all day that I decided to just head home,” Veronica explained, realizing how lame it sounded as she said it.

“It’s fine. I understand. And I was just going to apologize for Heather putting you on the spot like that… I should have said more when it happened. I was just so surprised to see you. And I’m sure an invitation was the last thing you were expecting.” As he was talking, he’d grabbed the discarded wrapper from her straw and started nervously folding it. “I can understand how awkward that would be—especially if you’re seeing someone—because in that situation, spending time with your ex would be rather uncomfortable.”

“I’m not,” she quickly blurted out. She noticed the corner of his mouth turn up more after that tidbit of information. She quickly tried to recover, feeling a little bit embarrassed by her involuntary outburst. “And it’s fine… I wasn’t expecting to see you either.”

"Well, since we've clarified there isn't some guy who’ll be upset if I spend some time with you... can I take you to dinner?" He glanced down at her food. "I mean—not tonight—but sometime soon. You could tell me all about Berkeley."

Veronica narrowed her eyes slightly. "How did you know I go to Berkeley?"

Logan smirked a bit more before he answered. "What? You think after all those years with you nothing wore off. I learned from the best," he replied smugly. 

Veronica started to consider what else he'd just said as well—he’d said  _ some guy  _ and not Piz. She hadn't talked to Logan before she left for Virginia. She'd spent most of that time trying to assure Piz that everything was fine between them. Even though she’d been more than a little moved by Logan defending her against Gory, Veronica had stuck to her earlier decree that he was out of her life—if not forever, at least for the remaining weeks of the school year. 

"And how did you know that I wasn't still dating Piz—since you didn't ask specifically about him?" They hadn't broken up until half-way through the summer, when she seemed to finally gain a bit more perspective on her life, being away from it all. She wondered who might have told Logan about both Berkeley and Piz, because none of her friends had mentioned talking to Logan about her.

A chagrined expression quickly formed on Logan's face. "Well... um..." he babbled a bit ineloquently. "I didn't take Piz for the type of guy who would cheat on his girlfriend... and given that he and Parker have been an item since the school year started... I just assumed."

"Oh," Veronica replied, not having expected that answer at all. Wallace hadn't been thrilled with how things had gone down between Veronica and Piz when they finally did break up and so Wallace never talked about him with her. Mac and Parker's friendship seemed to implode right after Parker broke up with Logan given Mac’s loyalty to Veronica, and so Veronica hadn't been surprised when Mac never mentioned her either. Of course for the brief time Veronica had thought that the baby may have been Parker's, she'd been convinced Mac hadn't mentioned Parker at all due to that. Now she wondered if the reason no one seemed to bring up Piz or Parker was the fact that the two of them had started dating.

"Yeah... I think their shared hatred for you and I is what brought them together," Logan pondered sardonically.

Veronica let out a soft chuckle. 

"So," Logan started again. "You didn't answer my question. Can I take you to dinner? I'll let you pick the place... any night you have free."

Veronica bit nervously on her lip. She was definitely torn between wanting to spend time with him but worried about how things might evolve.  _ I’m only here for a few weeks and then back to being four hundred miles away. _

"It's just  _ dinner _ , Veronica," Logan continued, obviously sensing her hesitation. "No strings attached. You can even just meet me at whatever restaurant you choose so you can make a quick getaway if you decide to. I'm sure I could talk Heather into coming along too if you don't want to be alone with me—she can be our chaperone." 

"I'm sure a chaperone isn't necessary," Veronica replied, rolling her eyes slightly. 

"So that's a  _ yes _ ?" Logan asked with a smirk. 

Veronica pulled her lower lip between her teeth again.  _ What harm could come from just having dinner with him? _ She released her lip and exhaled slowly. "Okay. Fine."

"Your enthusiasm is overwhelming," Logan teased, but she could tell from the way his eyes lit up that he was delighted with her answer. "Do you work tomorrow night?" he asked next. She could easily tell that he was trying hard not to sound too excited about it.

"Yeah, but I have the next night off."

"So Thursday?" Logan confirmed. She thought it looked like he was determining whether that would work, based on the way his brows furrowed slightly.

"Yeah... if that doesn't work, maybe we can find a day next week or some other time."

"No, no... that will work," Logan quickly replied.

She narrowed her eyes slightly, suspicious that he already had plans for Thursday. "Are you sure, because you seem a little uncertain."

He shook his head. "Nope. So, should I pick you up or did you want to have an easy escape option with your own car?"

Veronica debated about whether she wanted to deal with any potential awkwardness if her dad might be home that evening. Given their history, and how her dad could be, she decided it was probably best to avoid that, at least for now. She didn't want to make Logan think she was planning to flee either, so went a different direction. "I could just meet you at the Grand and we could go from there."

Logan frowned for a second before he tilted his head to the side. "Well, I don't live at the Grand anymore... but if you're dying to reminisce, I could certainly rent the penthouse for the evening." She could tell by the smirk that appeared as he finished talking that he was only teasing her.

"You moved?" she asked incredulously. She’d certainly not expected him to abandon the comforts of the penthouse.

Logan chuckled at her and nodded. "Yeah... well.... Heather and Melinda's mom is a realtor and when she found out that I was a millionaire living in a hotel penthouse, she decided that wasn't really suitable. She more than happily found me a place to buy. Of course I'm sure the commission was the primary driver, but I actually love the condo she found me, so it worked out well for both of us."

"Wow," Veronica started and then paused for a moment. She had never envisioned that considering how irresponsible he could be before she'd left.

"Yeah... I do miss the daily housekeeping and room service, but the oceanview and beachfront location more than makes up for it."

She laughed and nodded. "I should’ve known it wasn't one of those run down condos over in the 02 zip." She narrowed her eyes slightly. " _ Daily _ housekeeping, huh? I'm guessing that you still have some sort of cleaning service don't you?" 

A sheepish look formed on Logan's face. "Okay, one point to Veronica."

She grinned broadly and nodded contently. She was about to ask if he had also hired a personal chef when he started talking again.

"There's actually a couple of great restaurants within walking distance of my place. If you want to meet me there, we can just walk to one of them to eat and then it will still be a semi-easy escape for you if you decide to bolt," he suggested with a slightly mischievous grin.

"Hey, there you are." Heather suddenly seemed to appear out of thin air and was standing right next to their table.

"Oh, sorry," Logan said as he glanced at Heather and then back at Veronica.

"Yeah, I knew the ' _ I'll be back in a minute _ ' wasn't going to turn out true when I saw the way you looked across the food court," Heather commented as she rolled her eyes at him.

Logan looked slightly embarrassed as he glanced down at his watch. "Oops... we need to get going don't we?" he asked as he looked up at Heather, who gave him what was clearly a 'no shit' look. Veronica smirked a bit watching the two of them together. 

"I could probably call Mom if you want to stay here," Heather offered right before Logan stood up. 

"No,we can go. You don't need to bother your mom." He turned to Veronica. "So I need to send you my new address. Do you still have the same cell number?"

Veronica nodded in confirmation and noticed Heather's eyes popped open a bit wider.

"It was nice bumping into you again," Logan said with a smirk as he did a theatrical little bow. "See you Thursday."

Veronica couldn't help but laugh a little at him as she nodded her reply. "Bye, Heather," she added before they both turned and started walking toward the end of the mall where the parking garage was located.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 

Veronica had been a little surprised not to get a text from Logan Tuesday night, but tried not to obsess about it. After how persistent he'd been, she couldn't imagine he’d blow her off. She finally decided that maybe he had been busy doing something with Heather. She also considered that maybe he'd gotten a new cell phone and didn't have her number anymore. While she was feeling a little hurt that he might have forgotten her number, it had been almost a year since they'd last dated, so that would be understandable. 

Wednesday she was scheduled to work in the home goods department instead of women's clothing, and while she was glad to get away from constantly refolding the same sweaters over and over, there were other drawbacks. The biggest one being that not only did she have to listen to the annoying Christmas music flowing from the store's sound system, but she also had to endure all of the holiday themed decorations that they sold. While most of the ornaments and wall decorations were fine, there were a number of those small table-top holiday animatronics that played their own music or made loud jingle bell sounds when someone would walk by and press the buttons on them. And of course, little kids seemed to find extreme joy in going along the shelves where they were located and pressing the button on each one in succession. On top of wanting to hide all the Christmas CDs, now she wanted to figure out how to remove all the batteries from every device in her current vicinity. Either that or just scare all of the children away so they'd stop pushing all of the buttons.

She had just finished glaring at a little boy who had pressed the play button on all the cute fluffy dancing snowmen when an amused-looking Morgan walked up to her. 

"Enjoying home goods?" Morgan asked with a smirk.

Veronica narrowed her eyes, but didn't dignify Morgan’s question with a response.

"Sooo... a cute hunky guy was just downstairs asking for you," Morgan continued when Veronica didn't answer her. Veronica quirked an eyebrow at Morgan. "I actually forgot you were up here and told him you weren't working tonight," she continued sounding a bit apologetic.

"Oh... well... that's fine," Veronica replied, trying not to sound disappointed.     

It was Morgan who quirked her eyebrow this time. "Yeah,  _ oookay _ ," she replied sounding unconvinced. "He looked sort of familiar," she continued narrowing her eyes slightly. "Tall handsome guy with dark brown hair. I'm pretty sure he didn't go to Pan, but I  _ know  _ I've seen him before."

Of course kids from Pan would likely have known Logan, either from attending parties together, or from all of his media attention. Veronica figured it would only be a matter of time before Morgan would be able to place him.  

"Logan Echolls?" Veronica asked, assuming it was Logan.

Morgan's eyes opened wider. "Yeah... I forgot he went to Neptune High with you, didn’t he? He seemed awfully disappointed that you weren't working—maybe even a little confused."

Veronica cringed at Morgan's comment. She hoped that Logan wouldn't think she'd lied to him about having to work. There wasn't really anything she could do about it then, though, since they weren't allowed to use their cell phones while they were working. "Thanks for letting me know."

"Yeah... I'm sorry I forgot. I realized I was wrong when I went to the break room to grab some money for dinner and saw your bag and coat in there. If he comes back through, I'll let him know you're up here."

"It's not that big of a deal," Veronica reassured her, even though she was also trying to convince herself that was true. It certainly would have been nice to see him since he still hadn't texted her by the time she'd come to work. 

After Morgan left, Veronica tried not to dwell over missing Logan. She hadn’t expected it to bother her as much as it did. She'd tried not to think much about him while she was at Berkeley, but reminders of him would just pop up out of the blue. She'd been adamant when she'd first come back for Christmas that she wasn't going to contact him because that seemed sort of pointless living over four hundred miles away. She also hadn’t even been sure that Logan was still in Neptune since neither Wallace or Mac had mentioned him the few times she'd talked to them. But once she saw him—and determined that he actually wasn't a new father—she couldn't seem to get him out of her mind. 

She was in the middle of straightening a shelf of small appliances when Veronica heard someone behind her clear their throat. "So... I've been looking for a good espresso machine, any recommendations?"

Veronica couldn't help but smile as she turned around. "I'm sure I could help you with that,  _ sir _ ," she replied coyly. 

"I'd  _ really  _ appreciate that," he told her with a genuine smile. "I'm actually thinking I could use a few other appliances as well, given I'm a first-time homeowner and so far I only own an electric can opener."

"Well can openers are certainly important, but we do offer a vast selection of other  _ fine _ appliances that no homeowner should be without," she continued as she gestured with her hand to the shelves filled with appliances in front of her.

"Where to begin?" Logan asked as his eyes opened wide with what she could only describe as a look at bewilderment. 

"Well, we could start with the espresso machine and go from there."

"Alright, show me what you've got," he said a bit salaciously with a quick wink.

She laughed in amusement and shook her head at him. "Is that what you say to all the sales associates?"

"Only the perky petite blonde ones."

"There's a perky petite blonde that works here? You really must introduce me," she teased as she started walking toward the shelf with the espresso machines.

Logan chuckled as he followed behind her. "Hey... do these snowmen dance?" Logan asked as they neared the shelf with the dreaded Christmas animatronics.

"Don't you da—" she started to say as she whipped back around to face him. 

His finger was less than an inch away from pressing a button, and he gave her a mischievous grin as he quickly tapped it. She rolled her eyes and shook her head at him. 

"For that, I'm definitely recommending the most expensive espresso machine even if it's not the best!"

He laughed and shrugged. "Come on... you've got to admit it's pretty cute."

"It was  _ cute  _ the first time someone pushed the button, but that was four long hours ago and since then those buttons have been pushed far too many times.”

"Sounds like someone has definitely pushed  _ your  _ buttons," Logan replied, clearly amused by her agitation. "And what does this one do?" he asked as he pointed to a jolly looking Santa Claus. 

She glared at him with a 'don't you dare' expression, causing him to laugh and hold his hands up in surrender. She gave him a look of approval and continued walking toward the espresso machine.

"So this one's the top of the line model, but this one has better reviews online," Veronica explained as she pointed to the two different espresso machines on the shelf. Logan raised his eyebrows at her, apparently surprised that she knew that. "Another lady was in earlier today looking at them too, and she looked them up on her phone," Veronica explained with a shrug.

"I guess I should go for the one with the best reviews then," Logan commented as he reached for one of the boxes and pulled it from the shelf. 

"You don't really have to buy something to talk to me," Veronica told him, feeling a little guilty all of a sudden. She'd certainly been short with him the day before for trying to talk to her while she was working and wondered if he was only buying something now because of that.

"No, seriously, I really do only have a can opener," he told her. "I'm not even sure what else I should buy," he added as he glanced back around at all the shelves of other types of appliances. 

"Did you also need a new cell phone, because I thought you were texting me your address and I haven't gotten that yet," Veronica blurted before she could stop herself.

Logan opened his eyes a bit wider, looking a little taken aback by her comment, but then gave her a playful smirk. "Well, I didn't want to seem  _ too _ desperate, so I thought I'd wait a day at least—isn't that the rule?—you should wait twenty-four hours after getting a girl's number so you don't come across as a creepy stalker?" 

Veronica rolled her eyes and shook her head at him, but then she thought more about what he’d just said. "I'm not just  _ some _ girl—we are still friends—right?" she asked, suddenly feeling a bit off balance with the conversation.

"Yeah, of course," he reassured her as he reached out and squeezed her shoulder. "I really didn't want to make you feel like I was being some huge pest... so  _ instead  _ I just showed up here for the  _ third _ day in a row," he said, looking embarrassed as he apparently realized how that wasn't really any better.

"I don't mind," she admitted a little awkwardly.

"Well I have legitimate excuses—sort of. Yesterday I had to pick Heather up here at the mall since she rode the bus over after school. And I swapped some babysitting time from tomorrow to tonight, so I was in the neighborhood anyway."

Veronica gave him a puzzled look, wondering what exactly his last statement meant.

"So, like I said on Monday night, I've been helping out with Mick... Melinda's baby since Dick's been so flaky about it. She's been suffering a bit of postpartum depression and going to yoga class seems to really help, so Heather came up with the idea of her and I watching Mick a couple nights a week so Melinda can go. Heather's not that comfortable watching him on her own, so I've been helping too. And their mom works insane long hours usually. So I was over there watching Mick with Heather before I came over here."

"Dick named his son,  _ Mick _ ?" Veronica asked as that struck her more than anything else Logan had just said.

Logan laughed a bit and nodded. "Well he wanted to name him Richard Casablancas the Third and Melinda said no way in hell that was happening, so instead she ended up naming him Mick. Melinda and Dick I guess... I don't know... It could be a tough name to grow up with, but way better than Dick."

Veronica chuckled and nodded in agreement. "It's really nice that you've been helping them."

"Yeah," Logan replied looking a bit uneasy about the compliment. "Well... Dick's gone through the full spectrum of emotions—denial, excitement, terror, anxiousness, avoidance—you name it— and I think Dick's felt that way. Heather and I became friends the weekend Dick and Melinda ran off and got married in Vegas... apparently when Mick was conceived."

Veronica's eye's widened at that. "Dick got married?"

"Yeah... and technically he’s still married, although you wouldn't guess it most of the time. Apparently, neither Dick nor Melinda are very good at follow-thru and he was suppose to get it annulled and didn't, and she thought he was taking care of it, but he hadn't. And she didn't do anything about it herself and then along came Mick.”

“I must admit, I'm a little surprised you seem so comfortable with a newborn. I don't recall you caring for many babies in the past.” She smirked a little before continuing. “Did you have some  _ secret  _ babysitting service I never knew about?”

“Well,” Logan started, looking almost embarrassed. “As I said, Dick has been pretty sporadic throughout this whole thing, but he did at one point agree to go to some parenting classes and he tricked me into going with him the first time. After that Heather sort of guilted me into going to more of them to try to get Dick to be a little prepared to help raise her nephew.”

“I’m sure they all appreciate your help,” Veronica assured him. “And I guess—if you ever have your own kids—you’ll already be a pro.”

“Yeah,” Logan replied looking a little disheartened. “If I ever…”

“So—did you want me to ring that up for you?” Veronica offered, realizing her comment had made things a little uncomfortable.

“Yeah—and maybe I should get a toaster—that’s a helpful thing to have, right?”

Veronica couldn’t help but laugh softly at him. “Yeah… definitely a  _ helpful  _ thing to have. I take it your freezer isn’t full of Eggos then?”

Logan cocked his head for a second and then laughed as well. “Nope… I’ve actually only been living there for a few weeks, so it’s still a bit sparse—in the food as well as the furnishings department.” His gaze traveled to a display of pots and pans.

“Do you need cookware as well?” Veronica asked with amusement.

“ _ Maybe _ ,” he answered sheepishly. 

“I hope your black Amex is still active,” Veronica teased as she took the espresso machine from him and sat it on the counter. “And here I was thinking it might be a slow evening for sales up here,” she added with a smirk.

“We wouldn’t want you to be bored, now would we?” Logan commented as he smiled down at her. “Maybe I should get one of those singing snowmen too,” he added as he glanced in their direction.

“As long as you promise not to turn it on when I’m there,” Veronica replied with a frustrated sigh. 

“I’d better pass… I wouldn’t want to give you an excuse not to come over tomorrow.” 

She gave him an approving smile and nodded. “Okay… let’s see what sort of  _ practical  _ things we can find for you instead.”  

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 

Veronica nervously pulled down her visor and took one more look at herself in the mirror.  _ It’s just dinner with Logan… nothing more… stop obsessing about it. _ She flipped the visor back up and let out a frustrated sigh. She’d already changed her clothes three times and her hair twice before she left her dad’s apartment. Fortunately her dad hadn’t been home when she was getting ready to leave, so she didn’t have to deal with the third degree from him. 

She grabbed her purse and a gift bag from the passenger seat and climbed out of the car. She’d started with a very casual outfit, but then worried that she would be underdressed if they went to a fancier restaurant for dinner, so she changed into the fanciest dress she’d brought home with her. But then decided that was too fancy and settled for a more casual dress and jean jacket. She figured it could pass if they went someplace nice, but wouldn’t seem like she was overdressed if they went someplace casual. She’d opted for higher heels than she normally wore, and she stumbled slightly as she first started up the walkway. 

Veronica took a deep breath and rang the doorbell on the end unit that matched the number Logan had given her. She glanced around admiring the meticulously manicured landscape while she waited for Logan to answer the door. 

“Hey,” Logan greeted her, sounding as nervous as she felt.

“Hey, yourself, ” she replied back. “I brought you a house warming gift,” she added as she awkwardly presented the bag.

“Oh… you didn’t have to…” he stammered out as he looked at her with a baffled expression. 

“It’s… it’s not—just... here,” she told him as she pushed the bag closer to him. 

“Thanks… come in,” he replied as he took the bag. He stepped to the side to give her room to enter. 

She quickly glanced around the condo as she walked inside. The layout was very open with a large living room that had floor-to-ceiling windows that offered premium views of the ocean. The kitchen was located at the front of the condo, but she could imagine that even standing in that space you’d still have gorgeous views of the beach behind the condo. While the furnishings were as sparse as Logan had mentioned, he still had a very luxurious looking sectional couch and several other pieces of furniture spread around the living room. Coming from her dad’s apartment where they were swimming in all of their festive Christmas decorations, the inside of Logan’s condo was seriously lacking any Christmas decorations at all. 

She turned back toward Logan who had just finished closing the door. “You can open it,” she told him as she gestured at the bag. He smiled and nodded and then started to laugh once he looked inside. “I figured you could probably use a little holiday cheer and since I’d discouraged your purchase yesterday… I thought it was the least I could do.”

“Thanks,” Logan said, smiling slightly as he pulled the animatronic snowman out of the bag.

“I’ll even allow you to push the button,  _ once _ ,” she added with a sly grin. 

Logan walked over to the counter that separated the kitchen from the living room and set the snowman down there. He smiled gleefully as he pressed the button and the sound of Frosty the Snowman filled the condo while the snowman jiggled back and forth.

“I love it,” he told her once it was finished. “So… did you want a quick tour, or did you want to head right out for dinner? There’s not much to see really. The main living space is on the bottom floor and there’s two bedrooms on the second floor. The view is spectacular though.”

“I can tell,” Veronica acknowledged as she turned to stare out the windows again. “Much nicer than the view you had at the Grand.”

“Yeah,” Logan agreed as he nodded. “It’s amazing to be able to roll out of bed, walk out my backdoor and get right in the water to surf.”     

“Yeah, I remember you used to tease me about how you couldn’t understand me not surfing when the ocean was right behind our apartment.”

Logan shrugged in response. “Yeah, and you used to offer to trade your bedroom for the penthouse, but I’d have to live with your dad,” he teased fondly.

Veronica laughed at the memory of how horrified Logan had been at that suggestion given how afraid he was of Keith sometimes, especially after they’d started having sex. 

“So what would you like to have for dinner?” Logan asked as he leaned casually against the counter. Apparently since she didn’t jump at the chance for a tour, he was moving on. 

Veronica gave him an uncertain look. “I’m game for anything.”

Logan’s lips turned up in a slightly mischievous grin. “ _ Anything _ ? Even if I just took you to the taco truck up the street?”

“Well, if we get to come back here and sit out on your deck and enjoy the view, that wouldn’t be so bad.”

“And it  _ would  _ put you in closer proximity to your getaway car,” Logan teased in reply.

“There is  _ that _ ,” Veronica countered with a smug grin.

“I think I have a better idea.” He paused and glanced down at her feet. “You look really beautiful, by the way, but I’m guessing you aren’t going to want to walk too far in those?”

“I can manage for a few blocks at least. And I could always make you give me a pony back ride if I need to.”

“You  _ could _ , could you?” he asked with a challenging smile.   

She screwed up her face, trying to look as defiant as possible, and nodded. 

He laughed and shook his head. “You’re probably right” he admitted sheepishly. “We could also walk along the beach if you wanted to go barefoot. The place I was thinking of is accessible from either the sidewalk or the beach.”

“I’m sure I’ll be fine on the sidewalk,” Veronica reassured him. 

“All right, shall we?” he asked as he gestured to the front door.

“We shall,” she replied as she started walking back to the entry way. 

They had been walking for a few minutes before Logan finally broke the almost awkward silence. “So, how are things going at Berkeley?” 

“Good… I decided on a psychology major after my summer internship. I spent a lot of time with profilers there, and that felt more like the direction I’d like to go. I’m still taking some criminology classes there too, but shifting my focus a little bit. How’s school going for you?”

“Better this year than last… I’m actually making it to all of my classes.” He paused and fell in step behind her for a few seconds for a jogger with a dog to pass by them on the sidewalk. “It still seems strange not to bump into you around campus, though,” he added once he’d moved to her side again. 

“Yeah,” Veronica let out a slow sigh and then worried her lower lip between her teeth for a moment. “I’m sorry I sort of vanished without a word. I just needed a change.”

“Hey, no—you don’t need to apologize, Veronica. You really didn’t owe me any explanation. I’ve definitely missed you, but I understand.”

“Okay…” she replied hesitantly. “Well I’m glad to hear school is going well for you.”

“Thanks. Well, here we are,” Logan announced as he waved his arm toward the restaurant they’d just stopped in front of. “I hope Hawaiian food sounds good to you.”

Veronica stared up at the sign that read ‘Aloha Grill and Tiki Bar’. The building itself had lush landscaping surrounding it with several gas powered tiki torches lit in front. The thatched roof definitely lent itself to the polynesian vibe it was giving off. “Will there be  _ leis _ ?” Veronica asked with a smirk. She silently laughed as Logan bit on his lip, obviously forcing himself not to make an inappropriate quip. 

“The food is amazing,” he told her as he opened the door. “Even without a  _ lei _ , I’m sure you’ll be very  _ satisfied _ ,” he added with a salacious wink. She knew he wouldn’t be able to resist the setup completely.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 

Logan hadn’t lied. The food at the grill was even better than Veronica had expected. Not only did she have a difficult time choosing which entree to try, selecting a dessert was even harder—both the Chantilly Haupia Cream Puffs and the Chocolate Coconut Eclair Cake sounded divine. She was pleased that Logan knew her well enough to order her second choice option for both the main course and dessert and then gladly shared his with her. Even though she’d initially been worried that it might be awkward going to dinner with him, their conversation through dinner had flowed easily. She realized halfway through their meal how comforting the familiar feeling of being with him really was. She’d almost forgotten how easy it could be to talk to him—sans crisis, they really did communicate well.

“So… you said something about walking in the sand?” Veronica asked as they stood up from the table. She’d noticed several couples had exited toward the beach from the outdoor dining area where they were seated.

“Yeah, we can go back that way,” Logan replied as he gestured to the steps that lead down to the beach. 

Veronica stopped at the bottom step and removed her shoes before stepping down into the cool sand. They walked a while without speaking, but to Veronica it felt more like a companionable silence than an awkward one. It had gotten dark while they were eating, but there was plenty of light from the surrounding buildings and streets to make walking along the beach easy enough even this late in the evening.

“Do you make it to the beach much up there?” Logan asked as they were finally nearing his condo.

Veronica shook her head. “No… Morgan talked me into going once and it just wasn’t the same. We’re really close to the Bay, but a real beach is a bit of a treck.” She’d told Logan all about Morgan and how she’d ended up working at Dillard’s during dinner.

“I think I’d miss it… I know I’d miss being able to surf. I can’t really imagine moving somewhere that I couldn’t drive to the ocean anytime I wanted to.”

“Well, good thing you’re a millionaire and can be particular about future career opportunities,” Veronica teased lightheartedly.

Logan chuckled and nodded. “I’m sure there could be  _ other _ reasons that I would agree to a non-coastal location, but a job definitely wouldn’t be one of them.”

“Knowing you and how much you love surfing, those would have to be some pretty  _ big  _ reasons,” Veronica countered. 

“Yeah,  _ epic  _ reasons,” Logan mumbled barely loud enough to hear him over the waves crashing against the sand. 

At Logan’s words, Veronica stopped walking. They’d never talked about his  _ epic  _ speech and she was caught off guard by him using that word, especially with the way he’d said it. He stopped a second later and turned back to look at her. He met her eyes for a moment before he nervously looked away.  

“Sorry…” he muttered softly as he shook his head and looked down at the sand. 

“For what?” she asked, not wanting to misunderstand his motives.

“For making things  _ awkward _ … bringing up the past… I didn’t want to do that tonight,” he replied as he glanced back up at her. The twinkle that had been in his eyes earlier was absent, replaced by a somber expression.

Veronica bit on her lower lip for a few seconds. “You didn’t—make things awkward,” she reassured him. 

“But you looked… I know when you’re upset with me. I’ve had plenty of experience with that,” he told her, his tone rueful.

“I’m not upset,” she added, trying to look reassuring as well. “I just didn’t realize you remembered that.”

“Well, we’re here,” he announced as he pointed toward his condo, apparently trying to avoid the topic of that night. “You can easily make your getaway now.” 

“I’m not in a rush to go home,” Veronica informed him with an affectionate smile. “I didn’t get the grand tour yet.”

Logan blew out a nervous breath. “Right… well we’d better do that, shouldn’t we?”

Veronica nodded, quickly trying to figure out how to get past their current awkwardness and back to the relaxed familiarity that had been there during dinner. “We could even watch a movie or something… if you wanted to, of course” she suggested, knowing that she really didn’t want to leave yet.

“Yeah, that would be great,” he replied and then he furrowed his brows slightly. She raised her eyebrows in a questioning look, silently encouraging him to continue. “Um… like I said before, my furnishings are a bit sparse and I currently only have a TV in my bedroom.”

Veronica couldn’t help but laugh and give him a sly grin. “I can give you a few extra minutes to go up and hide your porn if that’s what you’re worried about.”

Logan chuckled and shook his head. “I just didn’t want to seem...” he trailed off and shrugged.

Veronica quirked an eyebrow at him. “Well, it’s definitely a good line to get girls up to your bedroom,” she suggested teasingly.

“I can carry the TV downstairs,” he quickly interjected, sounding a bit flustered. He paused for a second before he started again. “And you’re the only girl who’s been here, besides Heather, Melinda and their mom.”

“Come on, Logan, I’m just teasing. It’s fine,” she said a bit more seriously. “And how many girls you’ve had over really isn’t any of my business. I find it a bit difficult to believe  _ you _ of all people wouldn’t be actively out there in the dating scene.”

Logan shrugged again as he opened the back door and they walked inside. “I haven’t really made that a priority… between helping with Mick and actually focusing on school… I guess I haven’t felt like dragging anyone new into my messed up life.”

Veronica scrunched up her face as she looked at him. “It sounds like your life is going pretty well to me.” She paused, feeling a bit uneasy, but then she forged ahead. “I’m sure  _ any _ girl would be thrilled to have you in her life.”

Logan sucked in a deep breath and she instantly recognized the intense look that appeared on his face. “Unfortunately it isn’t just  _ any  _ girl I want in my life.”

Veronica felt her pulse quicken. She had no doubt what he was implying by the way he was looking at her. It was the same look he’d given her at alterna-prom and so many other times after that when they were together. This time though, unlike alterna-prom, instead of feeling that all too familiar uncontrollable need to flee, she felt the complete opposite. “Really?” she whispered softly as she took a step toward him. 

Logan nodded and slowly reached up to touch her face just like he had that night at the Grand. Somewhere deep inside she realized she was done running from this, from her feelings for him. She exhaled slowly as his warm hand cupped her cheek. She kept her eyes locked with his and could see the hope that was growing stronger in his expression with every second that went by. He hesitantly leaned toward her, perhaps expecting her to bolt at any moment. She finally closed her eyes when his nose bumped into hers and then let out a soft sigh as his warm lips pressed against hers. The kiss started chaste and light, but quickly became more passionate. Veronica carelessly let her shoes fall on the floor, freeing both of her hands. She then proceeded to grip his shirt and pulled him closer to her as his other hand gently cupped the back of her head. She could feel his fingers lightly stroking her scalp as they continued to kiss.

Logan was the one to finally break the kiss, resting his forehead against hers and taking a deep slow breath. She gently nudge his nose with hers. “Didn’t you promise me a tour?” she whispered breathlessly as she felt her lips curl up into an uncontrollable smile. 

“Yeah…” Logan replied as he exhaled slowly. He brought his hand that was in her hair down to his side, but took a moment to keep stroking her cheek with his thumb on his other hand. Then he slowly moved that hand down her neck and down her arm so he could link his fingers with hers. “So this is the living room,” he said as he looked intently into her eyes. She smiled and kept her eyes locked with his and nodded. He smiled a bit more before he finally broke eye contact with her and looked toward the kitchen. “And you saw the kitchen earlier… I do have a study if you’d like to see that.”

“Don’t keep me in suspense,” she teased with a coy grin causing him to chuckle softly. She slipped her purse off her shoulder and let it slide down to join her shoes on the floor. 

He led her to a closed door right off the living room that she hadn’t noticed earlier. After opening the door, he flicked on the light, revealing a room that was a little bigger than her bedroom at her dad’s apartment. It had built-in mahogany cabinetry with a matching desk. She noticed several text books sitting on the edge of the desk and an open laptop on it as well. The wall facing the ocean had built-in upholstered bench seats set beneath large windows. 

“Must be hard to study with that view?” she commented as she glanced out toward the water. Even though it was dark outside, there were several spot lights shining out on the water from the complex and you could easily make out the waves crashing along the beach.

Logan shrugged. “It’s actually smart glass and I can make them so I can’t see out if I need to.”

“Really?” Veronica asked, unaware that something like that was even possible.

“Yeah… this place really has some great features. Not only can I control that, but the windows are also only one way and people can’t see in from the outside. Great for privacy.”

Veronica’s lip quirked up slightly. “Good to know,” she told him with a hint of lasciviousness in her tone.

Logan bit on his lip and tilted his head slightly as he nodded. “ _ All _ the windows facing the ocean side of the house have that feature,” he added.

“ _ Very _ good to know,” she continued with an even more salacious grin.

Logan took a deep breath before he started talking again. “So… on with the tour?” She nodded in agreement and he led her out of the room, turning off the light as they left.

“That door leads to the garage and a small laundry room,” Logan explained as he pointed to a door off the kitchen. “And there’s a bathroom through there,” he added as he pointed to another door. “And these are the stairs…” he continued a little hesitantly. “Shall we?”

“Yes, we shall,” she replied boldly. 

He nodded and led her up the stairs, flicking on a light when they reached the top. “This is the guest room,” he explained as they passed the first open door at the top of the stairs. “Heather comes and stays sometimes, so I wanted to be sure she had a place to sleep.” Veronica could tell from the illumination from the hall that there was a large bed and a couple dressers in that room, but that was about the extent of the furnishings so far.

“Guest bathroom,” Logan explained as they continued down the hall past another door on their way to the end of the hall. He led her through the final open door and turned on the lights as they walked in. “And this.... is my bedroom.”  

“Not too shabby,” Veronica commented as she took a quick look around. The bed was definitely king-sized and was covered with a luxurious comforter. She could easily imagine high thread-count silk sheets underneath it. She was actually impressed that it was made given he no longer had the benefit of the Grand’s daily housekeeping service. There were several dressers around the edges of the room and a large flatscreen TV mounted on the wall. “That may have been a bit difficult to bring downstairs,” she told him with a laugh as she pointed to the TV. 

Logan shrugged. “I’m sure I could have gotten it down if you’d insisted on watching TV downstairs.”

She laughed a bit more and shook her head at him. “I bet the view from up here is amazing when the sun is setting into the Pacific,” she added as she stared toward the large windows facing the ocean.

“You’re welcome to come and see it anytime,” Logan quickly replied.

She turned and smiled up at him. “ _ Anytime _ , huh?” 

Logan nodded as the corner of his mouth quirked up slightly. “Well it would be better if it’s when I’m home, but I suppose I could be persuaded to give you my access code for when I’m not,” he replied teasingly.

“Like I didn’t already catch that your code is your birthday backwards when you typed it in downstairs,” she told him coyly.  

“Is it?” he asked, obviously feigning innocence.

“Mm hmm,” she replied as she narrowed her eyes in an ‘I’m onto you’ sort of way. 

“And through that door is the master bathroom, with the largest jacuzzi tub I’ve ever seen,” he continued, moving on from the pass code topic. 

She quirked her head and looked at him skeptically. 

“I’m not kidding, but I know you’ll have to see it for yourself to believe it.”

She smiled and nodded and he led her that direction next, flicking on another light switch as they walked in.

“Wow,” she proclaimed as she walked into the very large bathroom. It really was a giant tub and the entire bathroom was definitely the most luxurious she’d ever been in. In addition to the huge tub, there was also a gorgeous shower with multiple showerheads and ornate tilework.

Logan chuckled softly and looked at her with amusement. ‘I told you, quite a room right?”

Veronica regained her composure and gave him an indifferent shrug. “It’s okay, but it’s hard to compete with the bathroom at Neptune High… we had some pretty memorable times there.” 

It only took a second for a flirtatious grin to spread across Logan’s face. “Very memorable,” he confessed as he stepped a little closer to her. “Maybe we need to test the height of the counters here to better compare?”

She bit on her lower lip to keep from smiling too much and nodded. He effortlessly scooped her up and sat her on the edge of the counter. She was glad that her skirt was fairly short and loose enough that he easily moved to stand between her knees.

“Seems like a pretty good height,” he commented with a lustful gleam in his eyes. She could tell he was forcing himself to keep his composure and not kiss her like he had downstairs. She wasn’t sure if he was doing that for her benefit or for his own, but that wasn’t exactly what she wanted.

“There’s only one way to be sure,” she purred as she reached out to grab his shirt and pulled him closer.

“Mm hmm,” he nodded slowly before pressing his lips against hers. After at least a full minute of kissing, he pulled away again. “Mmm… so do the counters pass your test?” he asked sounding a bit breathless.

“I approve,” she replied with a blissful smile on her lips. 

“Any other  _ tests  _ you’d like to perform?” Logan asked with a hint of hopefulness in his eyes.

She could think of a million things she’d like to  _ test  _ at that particular point in time, but wasn’t sure how far she should take things. She forced herself to remember that she was only home for break and in a few short weeks would have to go back to Berkeley—whether or not she wanted to. She’d realized several weeks ago that she was starting to feel really homesick, and thought it was from missing her dad, but this past week that she’d been home, she still hadn’t quite felt settled and content again. But now she was starting to wonder if Logan had actually been that missing piece all along. The time they’d spent together earlier, even before they had kissed downstairs, she was finally starting to feel like her old self again. 

Probably due to her hesitation in answering him right away, his brows furrowed slightly and he reached up to stroke her cheek. “Everything okay?” he asked, sounding noticeably concerned.

She gave him a reassuring smile as she nodded. His expression relaxed a little, but he still took a step back, offering her his hand to help her off the counter. She wished she could share how she was feeling with him, but even though she didn’t want to run from her feelings for him anymore, that didn’t mean that she could easily verbalize them either. She kept a hold of his hand after she had slid off the counter and led him back out to the bedroom. 

She stopped and turned back toward him standing next to his bed. He still had a slightly worried look on his face as he gazed intently down at her. 

“You’re too tall again,” she pouted softly before pushing on his chest lightly. She backed him up against the mattress until he sat down. “Better,” she told him, as she nudged his knees slightly, so she could stand between them. 

He smiled slightly, but she could still see concern in his expression. “Did you want to watch a movie?” he asked. He studied her carefully and Veronica could tell he was trying to figure out what she was thinking

She shook her head and leaned toward him, lifting her hands to rest on the sides of his face. He still looked a little uneasy with his brows furrowed a bit. He took a deep breath before he spoke again. “You’ve got to know by now that you’re my kryptonite,” he told her earnestly. “I never seem to have the strength to tell you no, even when I probably should. I don’t know if this is one of those times or not. I really don’t want to discourage whatever you may be thinking, but I need to know where your head is, Veronica. I really didn’t expect tonight to go like this… and I don’t want to let something happen that either one of us might regret later.”

Veronica gave him a demure smile and leaned in to reassure him she wasn't going to regret anything with a passionate kiss. Her mouth was just inches from his when the unmistakeable sound of a doorbell broke through their intimate silence. 

“Expecting company?” Veronica teased as she leaned back a bit. Logan’s face tightened, and Veronica knew that he was equally surprised, and perhaps even a bit frustrated, by the interruption. 

He shook his head and looked like he was about to say something, but before he could, the bell rang again. A second after that, there was the unmistakable sound of a door opening and closing, accompanied by a screaming infant.

“Shit… Dick… he has my access code,” Logan told her as he gave her a pained smile. “And apparently a very upset baby.” He let out a frustrated sigh. “I’m sorry.”

Veronica wasn’t thrilled by the interruption, but what was she going to say.  _ Just ignore them and maybe they’ll go away?  _ She went with ‘it’s okay’ instead and took a step backwards so he could stand up from where she’d shoved him down on the bed.

Once he was on his feet, Logan reached his hand out for hers with an almost questioning look on his face. She gave him a tender smile and put her hand into his, allowing him to lead her out of the room. When they reached the landing at the top of the stairs, they could see Dick trying,  unsuccessfully, to calm down the baby.

“Thank god you’re home,” Dick exclaimed when he looked up at them. His eyes lingered on Veronica for a second before a fresh bout of protest from the small infant in his arms drew his attention away from them.

“Here,” Logan directed to Dick. He dropped Veronica’s hand when they reached  the bottom of the stairs and reached out his arms for the still screaming child. “What’s the matter, Champ?” he asked the baby softly as he positioned him against his chest and started rocking slightly in place. “What’s going on?” he asked Dick next, obviously keeping his tone in check for the baby, but his expression was a bit harsh. 

Dick exhaled deeply and then shook his head as he ran one hand through his hair. “Mel was bitching about me not helping enough, so I said I could take Mick for a couple hours tonight to let her go out to a movie with a few of her girlfriends and things quickly went from bad to worse once it was just the two of us.” 

Logan let out a frustrated sigh. Mick was still crying as hard as when Dick had arrived. “Did you check his diaper or try giving him some milk?” Veronica was impressed with Logan’s ability to remain calm given the situation. She wasn’t sure she’d actually be able to stay unflustered if she was the one dealing with an inconsolable child.  

“Yes?” Dick answered as more of a question than a statement, shrugging off the diaper bag he had slung over his shoulder. 

Logan glanced at Veronica with an apologetic look on his face. She could tell from his expression, that he was thinking this wasn’t going to be a quick visit. 

“I should probably go” Veronica said a little reluctantly as she walked over to where she’d left her shoes and purse. She slipped back into her shoes after picking up her bag and walked back to Logan.

“I’m sorry,” he mumbled, looking as disappointed as she felt about her deciding to leave. She didn’t want him to feel bad when he was just being a good friend helping out in a difficult situation. 

“You don’t need to apologize,” she told him as reassuringly as she could. “I had a great night.”

“Me too,” he replied, letting his gaze linger on her for a moment before the baby started crying even louder. She knew drawing out her exit would probably just make both him and Mick feel worse, so she said a quick goodbye and then left.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Notes at end

As Veronica mulled around the home goods department at Dillard’s on Friday morning, she came to the conclusion that the universe had probably been trying to send her a message with the interruption the night before. The thoughts floating through her mind when she'd shoved Logan down on the bed were far from chaste, and after a night to reflect on everything, she decided crossing the line she nearly crossed with Logan was probably not a good idea. Even if she’d been feeling unbearably homesick at Berkeley, she'd made the decision to transfer there, and she wasn't going to come running home after just one term. After the night before with Logan, she realized her old feelings for him could end up making her time at Berkeley even more unbearable. No, reconnecting with him and then having to leave would certainly make her want to come home even more. Dating had been challenging enough for them when they lived in the same town, they were sure to be doomed with all the challenges of a long distance relationship.

While she straightened a shelf of dish towels, she made up her mind that she needed to clarify how she was feeling with Logan and put some definite boundaries in place—maybe she shouldn’t even spend much more time with him before she went back to Berkeley.  

“Do these come in different sizes, or are they more of a one size fits all?”

Veronica spun around to find the person she'd just decided she should avoid smirking at her.

“They're oven mitts, not condoms,” she unexpectedly blurted out, before slapping her hand over her mouth, horrified that she'd just said that outloud.

She couldn't remember the last time she'd seen such delight on Logan’s face. She self consciously glanced around to see if there were any other customers within earshot, feeling her face heating up with embarrassment.

“Thanks for clarifying _that_ for me. And these are just turkey basters, right?” Logan continued, a blend of mischief and amusement evident in his tone as he picked up a turkey baster and squeezed the rubber bulb.

She covered the rest of her face with her hands and shook her head for a few seconds before slowly sliding them down so she could see him again. Even though she could tell that he was taking great pleasure in her slip and embarrassment, he seemed to be forcing himself to not let it be too obvious.

“So… how did things work out with Mick?” Veronica asked, trying to shift the conversation away from her inappropriate quip.

“Oh, right,” Logan commented, his expression becoming a bit more thoughtful as he put the baster back down on the shelf. “It took me a while, but I finally did get him calmed down. I’m really sorry our evening was cut short by that.”

“Yeah… about last night…” Veronica countered hesitantly. _No better time than the present to set things straight and start working on those boundaries_. “I may have gotten a little carried away by all the nostalgia of being home… and being with you.”

“Right,” Logan replied, seeming a little flustered by her statement, but doing his best to look unaffected by it.

“Yeah… I mean, I don’t regret kissing you… that was great… but I was thinking it probably wasn’t really practical with me only being here for a couple of weeks before I head back to school.” She suddenly realized how awkward things sounded saying them outloud versus just thinking them in her head.

“Right… _practical_.”

“Great… so we’re on the same page then?”

Logan cocked his head slightly and gave her what almost seemed to be a forced smile. “Yeah, sure. Completely platonic. That makes sense.”

“Right… _platonic_ ,” Veronica repeated, not so sure this was going as well as she had hoped. She suddenly realized he was still holding one of the oven mitts he’d picked up. “Did you actually need to buys some oven mitts?” Changing subjects seemed to be her best option yet again.

“Yeah… actually. I um… I stopped by to see if you’d do me a favor. As a _friend_ of course…”

“That’s what friends are for, right? _Favors_?” Veronica asked, trying to sound as normal as possible.

“Yeah… well, Heather has this holiday party thing tomorrow night that she asked me to go to with her and she signed us up to bring cookies. I was hoping—now that I have a real kitchen—that you’d be willing to help me bake some. I could just buy some store-made ones for it, but was thinking—since I know this girl who bakes amazing cookies—that maybe she’d be willing to help.”

“And _she_ was busy, so you asked me?” Veronica teased in reply.  

The corner of Logan’s mouth quirked up in a crooked grin. “Exactly. So would you be willing to help a guy out?”

“Sure, but I think you’re going to need to buy a few more items that you may not already own.”

“Appears I’m in the right place for that, doesn’t it,” Logan replied jauntily.

Veronica bit on her lower lip for a moment to keep from smiling too much as she nodded in reply. “So I’m guessing you don’t have any baking sheets or cooling racks yet?” she asked questioningly as she swapped the oven mitt he was holding for a better pair and then headed for the next aisle of cooking ware.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Veronica stared quizzically at the wreath adorning Logan’s front door. She was certain it hadn’t been there the night before, unless she really was so nervous when she’d first arrived to even notice it. _Certainly my observational skills aren’t that rusty, are they?_ He’d answered the door much faster the night before, and she was about to push the doorbell for a second time when the door flew open.

“Hi… uh…” Veronica stammered out when Heather’s face was staring back at her instead of Logan’s. “Is Logan home?”

“Of course… He was just finishing up the stairs and I was closer,”  Heather explained as she gestured to the staircase with her hand that wasn’t holding the door open.

Veronica’s eyes opened a bit wider as she took in the sight in front of her. The stair’s railing was now adorned with fresh cedar garland, complete with bows and ribbon. Logan stood at the top, apparently just finishing up attaching it to the woodwork.

“Wow, you’ve been busy today,” Veronica commented as she admired his handiwork.

“Heather insisted we make the place a bit more festive. We wouldn’t want the snowman to feel out of place, now would we,” he replied as he started walking back down the stairs.

“And I see you went on quite the shopping spree today, didn’t you?” she added when she glanced into the living room and spotted a large screen TV that had definitely not been there the day before.

“I’d actually ordered that last week and they finally delivered it this morning,” he responded, looking a little sheepish.

“We’re watching ‘The Year Without a Santa Claus’ later,” Heather piped in. “You’re staying for that right?”

A sly smile crossed Veronica’s face as she glanced at Logan. “That’s one of my _favorite_ Christmas movies,” Veronica commented.

“Is it?” Logan asked innocently, obviously fighting hard to keep a smirk off his face. They’d had plenty of discussions over Christmas movies when they were younger for him to know that was true. “I think we left one of the bags with the cookie supplies in the Range Rover,” Logan continued, turning his attention to Heather. “Can you run out to the garage and get it for me?”

“Sure,” Heather replied as she bounded off in that direction.

“I hope you don’t mind that she’s joining us for cookie baking,” Logan said as the door to the garage closed behind Heather. “When I mentioned it to her, she was just so excited and asked if she could come over too.”

“No, it’s fine,” Veronica assured him.

“And I know I only mentioned baking and pizza earlier, but then Heather suggested a movie. I’d love for you to stay, but don’t feel obligated if you really don’t want to or had other plans for later.” He seemed to have a cautiously optimistic look on his face.

Despite her earlier resolution to put a little more distance between them during the rest of her break, a movie night with both him _and_ Heather seemed innocent enough. And it really was one of her favorite Christmas movies. “That sounds fun actually,” she replied.

A second later, the door to the garage opened and Heather walked back in with a shopping bag in her arms. Heather sat the bag down on the counter with an exaggerated huff.

“So should we order some pizza before we get started with the cookies?” Logan asked as he looked back and forth between the two girls.

“Well, I am pretty famished,” Veronica replied, earning a smirk from Logan. She glanced toward the door that lead to his study.  “Is that _mistletoe_?” she asked glancing questioningly back at Logan and Heather.

“ _She_ insisted we get some,” Logan explained as he pointed an accusatory finger at Heather who had a smug grin on her face. “I relented as long as we hung it someplace out of the way.”

“You two are welcome to try it out,” Heather suggested with a gleam in her eye.

“ _Heather!_ ” Logan countered with a warning tone.

“What?” Heather shot back. “It's not like the two of you have _never_ kissed before.  A peck on the cheek wouldn't kill you.”

“About that pizza,” Logan sighed with obvious frustration.

“Cho’s?” Veronica suggested with an understanding smile. Focusing on food sounded like a good way to get the memories of kissing him the night before out of her mind. Of course Heather’s suggestion would bring the thought of that—and how amazing it was—popping right back to the forefront of her mind.

Once they all agreed on what to order and Logan had called it in, they got started on the cookies. Veronica and Logan had discussed different options earlier and had settled on gingerbread people.

“Logan told me you make the best snickerdoodles that he's ever had,” Heather tossed out as they started mixing up the gingerbread dough.  

“It's true,” Logan added with a blissful smile, obviously thinking back to how they used to taste. “I even used to sneak a few extra ones when she wasn't looking.”

Veronica gave him a scandalized look. “And I always blamed my dad when they went missing.”

“Hm… that’s surprising, given Logan also said that you were the smartest woman he knew and a brilliant detective,” Heather shared with a puzzled look on her face.

“He said that, did he?”

Logan looked a little embarrassed but nodded in confirmation.

Heather’s look of confusion, quickly changed to admiration. “Yeah, he told me about some of your cases. All the mysteries you helped solve,” Heather gushed as she glanced between Logan and Veronica. “At first I thought he was just exaggerating, but then he showed me some articles that he has.”

Veronica’s curiosity was peaked at that. “You have _articles_?” she asked as she looked questioningly at Logan.

“Um... yeah,” he replied, looking even more unsure of himself. He started pulling supplies out of the bag that Heather had retrieved from the Range Rover, noticeably avoiding looking at either Heather or Veronica.  

“You should show her later,” Heather suggested with a broad grin aimed at Veronica.

“Yes, you _should_ ,” Veronica agreed.

“I’m pretty sure you remember all your adventures, Veronica,” Logan deflected. “But if you want to see them, I guess I could dig them out.”

“So have you worked on any exciting cases at Berkeley?” Heather asked enthusiastically. “Any murder cases there?”

Veronica scoffed slightly. “No… despite what some people _might_ think, murder cases don’t just follow me around.”

“ _I_ never thought that,” Logan protested slightly.

“I never said that you did,” Veronica replied quickly, suddenly regretting her choice of words.

“Yeah, but I think you were sort of implying that,” Logan added with his brows furrowed.

“Well, you certainly got wrapped up in several here in Neptune,” Heather interjected, perhaps sensing a bit of tension.

“I guess that’s true… but no… nothing like that at Berkeley. And, besides a friend I made there who went to Pan, no one else really knows about that part of my past, so no one asks me for help.”

“That must be... _refreshing_ ,” Logan commented, sounding aggravated.

It took Veronica a second to figure out why that would bother him, but then it dawned on her. Most of the things that caused problems for them when they were together before were related to cases she had been involved in; especially her not backing down from working on the Hearst rapist case. As he’d tried to warn her once, all her digging was typically what lead to problems; not just between them, but with her other friends and family too.

“Logan said you saved his ass several times too,” Heather continued, earning a scowl and a disapproving ‘ _Heather_ ’ from Logan. “Sorry… _butt_ ,” she corrected with an exaggerated eye roll.

“Well Logan also saved _my_ butt several times,” Veronica shared affectionately. She glanced at Logan and noticed he was focused intently on the rolling pin on the counter in front of him.

“ _Logan_ saved _you_?” Heather asked in obvious disbelief.

Veronica narrowed her eyes at Logan who had started fidgeting with the handle of the rolling pin. “Yeah,” Veronica replied still watching Logan carefully. His mouth drew up into one of the strained grimaces that was all too familiar to her. “He never told you any of _those_ stories?”

Veronica turned back to Heather, who was shaking her head with wide eyes. “I've never heard the _heroic_ Logan stories,” Heather practically gushed.

“Trust me, I'm not that much of a hero,” Logan quickly interjected, his tone self depreciating. “What temperature should I set the ovens to?” he abruptly asked, clearly trying to change the subject as he spun and walked over to the built-in double ovens.

“How can you say that?” Veronica challenged even though his back was turned toward her. “I would have _died_ that night on the roof if you hadn't saved me.”

“350 it is,” Logan muttered as he started pushing buttons.

“ _Died_? I want to hear about that,” Heather proclaimed excitedly.

“No, you don't,” Logan replied sternly, finally meeting Veronica's gaze as he spun back around with an almost pleading expression.

It took a second for Veronica to realize why he probably didn't want to share that story with Heather. _Cassidy. Dick's brother. Mick's uncle_. Veronica’s expression softened. “Well… I sometimes got myself into dangerous situations, and luckily Logan was there that time to rescue me,” she offered,hoping that might placate Heather. “We'd better get busy with these cookies if we want them in the oven when our pizza gets here.”

Logan gave her a grateful smile. “You're the boss, just tell us what we need to do,” he replied as he walked back toward the counter. Veronica could tell Logan was happy to switch their focus to cookie baking and away from dredging up the past.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

They’d finished cutting out all the gingerbread men and women just moments before their pizza arrived. With the cookies baking in the oven, they all moved to the living room to enjoy the pizza while Logan started the movie. Heather didn’t seem completely convinced that it qualified as a great classic Christmas movie, but she was a good sport about it anyway. She laughed at Logan and Veronica singing along to the songs at least. Logan and Veronica seemed to spend almost as much time reminiscing about past Christmases that they’d spent together—mostly at the Kane estate watching old Christmas movies—than paying attention to the movie. They did at least keep most of their chatter down to a whisper so they wouldn’t be too distracting for Heather.

When the cookies had finished baking, the trio paused the movie so they could move the cookies from the ovens to cooling racks.  By the time they were done with the movie, the cookies were cool enough to decorate. Once again, Logan and Veronica ended up reminiscing about years long past. Veronica reminded him about one Christmas when she’d convinced Lilly, Duncan and Logan that they should all bake holiday cookies together, but Veronica ended up dong most of the work and the other three just ate them.

“You should come with us to the party tomorrow night,” Heather suggested as they were frosting the final cookies.

“Yeah, if you’re off work early enough tomorrow night, you’re welcome to come along. It’s a holiday party that the youth group at Heather’s church is putting on,” Logan explained. “Lots of good food and even some dancing I’ve been told.”

“I do get off work tomorrow at four again,” Veronica replied as she considered the offer.

“Well, you can think about it and see how you’re feeling tomorrow. I know working a long shift can be exhausting, so we can just play it by ear if you want,” Logan quickly added, perhaps not wanting her to feel too much pressure from Heather’s invitation.

“Well, I think I’m going to head up to bed,” Heather announced as she hopped off the stool she had been perched on.

Logan gave her a suspicious look. “It’s only nine-thirty… usually you’re begging me to stay up much later when you’re here.”

Heather stretched and let out an obviously fake yawn. “I guess cookie baking and decorating is just extra exhausting,” she commented with a coy grin. “I hope I’ll see you tomorrow, Veronica. Goodnight you two.”

Logan rolled his eyes slightly as he watched Heather bound up the stairs after both he and Veronica had told her goodnight. “So,” he said once he’d turned back to Veronica, “thanks again for helping with the cookies. I really do appreciate it, and I know Heather did too.”

“Yeah of course,” Veronica replied, fidgeting slightly with a bowl of small candies that they’d been using to decorate the cookies. “They turned out really well,” she added as she looked them over.

“Yeah… even mine don’t look to hideous do they?” he commented as he inspected them a little bit more closely as well. Heather and Veronica had teased him a bit when they first started because his were definitely not coming out quite as nicely as theirs were.

“So you promised to show me those articles,” Veronica tossed out cautiously, not sure how he'd react. Her mind had kept wandering back to their earlier conversation several times throughout the night, and she was definitely intrigued that he’d found and kept articles about her. She was also still a little upset that he didn’t seem to agree that he’d done heroic things for her in the past and she’d been internally debating how to broach that with him.

Logan shrugged and she could see his adam's apple bob a bit as he must have nervously swallowed. “They’re about you… so I’m sure you’ve read them before.”

“I’d still like to see them,” she tried again, not wanting to sound demanding, but also not wanting to give in that easily either.

Logan let out what sounded like a resigned sigh. “I um… I think they’re in the desk in the study… I can go look,” he mumbled as he stood up and walked in that direction.

He didn’t look back at her, perhaps not expecting—or maybe even not wanting—her to follow. _When did Veronica Mars ever do what anyone wanted her to?_ She quietly followed him a minute later, pausing for a second to look up at the mistletoe before she took a few more steps into the study. He glanced up as he pulled a file folder out of the bottom drawer of his desk. He then walked back toward her, looking down a bit nervously at the file in his hand. Once he was close enough to her, he held it out so she could take it.

She briefly flipped it open, recognizing a few articles from not only the Neptune Register, but also from the Hearst paper and even the Neptune High student paper.

“We could go back out to the living room if you wanted to look through them,” Logan suggested, sounding a bit anxious. She nodded and he slowly started back toward the door. She followed him, but then stopped abruptly.

“I hope you know I really do think of you as a hero, Logan,” she admitted, trying to sound as resolute as she possibly could. He stopped moving as well but didn’t turn back to face her. “And I really wouldn’t be alive today without you,” she continued, wishing he’d turn so she could see his face to try to decipher what he was thinking.

She heard him let out a deep sigh before he shook his head slightly. “I always thought the hero was supposed to get the girl… so I’m not so much a hero, Veronica,” he mumbled so softly she barely heard him.

She could have just written his comment off as him being overly dramatic, but it still touched something in her that she normally tried to ignore. “Who said the story’s over?” she whispered back, surprising herself a little that she felt bold enough to say it.

He turned just enough so he could look over his shoulder at her and she could now see how somber he looked. She was hoping for a smile, but she could easily understand why he might be reluctant to let himself hope for too much with her.

She glanced up above her head for a second and then back at him. “Isn’t there some tradition you’re supposed to uphold?” she asked with a gentle smile.

Logan let out a shaky breath and nodded, slowly walking back toward her with a cautious look on his face. He leaned down and placed a tender kiss on her cheek. “I think that meets the _platonic_ kiss protocol,” he mumbled softly, not backing away, but not getting any closer either.

She let out a soft sigh. “Even _I_ make bad decisions sometimes,” she told him, looking intently into his eyes.

“Like standing under the mistletoe?” he asked with a slight raise of his brow, his demeanor remaining very guarded.

She smiled tenderly and shook her head, tipping up on her toes to close enough of the distance between them so she could press her lips to his. The kiss started and remained soft and slow; neither one of them seemed to be in any rush to go faster. After several seconds, she felt the back of Logan’s fingertips gently brush her cheek before his fingers curled into her hair. They had to have kissed for nearly two minutes before they finally broke apart, both taking very deep breaths. They were still standing in the doorway with Logan’s forehead tilted down to rest against hers.

“Shall we move to the couch, so you don’t have an unfair height advantage?” Veronica asked coyly.

His lips curved up on one side and he shook his head. “I’m afraid if we leave this spot, the magic of the mistletoe will end and we’ll have to go back to just being platonic friends,” he replied, sounding more teasing than serious.

She rolled her eyes and grabbed his hand, pulling him along behind her to the couch. “For science,” she said with a wink as she sat down on the couch, yanking him down next to her. She gently tossed the folder on an end table next to the couch and then turned toward him. She was relieved to see that he had a small amused grin on his face, replacing the melancholy look that had been there only a short while before.  

“Well, did the magic of the mistletoe wear off?” Logan asked with the tiniest of smirks.

Veronica shook her head and fisted both of her hands into his shirt, pulling him to her. His nose gently nudged hers for a second before he lightly nipped at her lips. She smiled and softly grabbed his bottom lip with her teeth before letting go and kissing him earnestly. It only took a few seconds before his hands were in on her face again, his fingers gently caressing her cheeks and then tangling into her hair.

Logan was the one to finally pull away. “Did you want to watch another movie?” he asked after taking a slow deep breath. He sounded as if he was looking for a distraction or something.

Veronica cocked her head slightly to one side as she looked at him. She hadn’t expected him to back off quite like that. She’d been so caught up with her own concerns earlier that morning and then focused on his comments earlier that evening that she’d forgotten he’d been a bit reluctant about where they were headed the night before. She wondered how much of his current restraint was for his sake, rather than hers. She certainly hadn’t said anything last night to reassure him about how she felt, instead throwing out the whole ‘let’s just be friends’ thing when she was at work earlier. Now she was back to trying to ravish him less than twenty four hours later.

“Heather may have said she was going to bed, but I’m a little skeptical; I wouldn’t be surprised if she makes a reappearance to see how things are going down here.”

“Oh, right!” Veronica replied, feeling a little foolish that she’d forgotten they weren’t actually alone. “Do you have a Christmas Story?” she asked with a childish grin.

“And here I thought you might ask for Die Hard,” Logan countered with a smirk.

Veronica laughed and shook her head at him. She and Lilly had certainly spent many holiday seasons arguing with Logan and Duncan about just why Die Hard was not a true Christmas movie. He leaned into her as if he was going to kiss her on the lips, but then quickly shifted and kissed her soundly on the cheek instead, giving her a devilish grin as he stood up. It didn’t take him long to swap out the movies and make his way back to her. Logan stopped at the ottoman in front of the couch, opening the top to pull out a blanket. He then started pushing the ottoman closer to where she was sitting, gesturing silently for her to lift her feet out of the way. She did as instructed and then stretched out once the ottoman was pushed up against the couch.

“Comfy,” she told him with a sly grin.

“Glad you approve,” he replied as he held the blanket a bit higher. “Blanket or no blanket?”

“ _With_ would be cozier.”

He nodded in agreement and shook out the blanket so he could cover her legs before he sat down next to her again. He casually wrapped his arm around her shoulders and she curled up against his chest, pulling the blanket over his legs as well. She thought about how this was a much better way to watch a movie as opposed to the earlier one where they had ended up on opposite ends of the couch.

As Logan had predicted, less than ten minutes into the movie, she heard the unmistakable sound of a door opening upstairs. Footsteps then followed on the stairs.

“Sorry, I forgot to grab my backpack from the Rover,” Heather apologized as she walked quickly behind them toward the garage door.

“You sure you don’t want to watch too?” Logan called out as Heather made her way back toward the stairs a minute later. “This one has important life lessons about not shooting your eye out,” he added causing Veronica to huff out a soft laugh.

“Yeah… we wouldn’t want to be responsible for that, now would we?” Veronica continued encouragingly.

“Well… if you’re sure you don’t mind,” Heather replied, still sounding a little reluctant.

“Of course not,” Veronica replied turning to give Logan a tender smile.

“Run up and grab your favorite blanket, cuz I’m not carrying you upstairs if you fall asleep down here again,” Logan warned Heather without much conviction in his tone.

A second later, the sound of Heather’s feet on the stairs echoed through the room.

“Thanks,” Logan whispered softly to Veronica before placing a chaste kiss on her lips.

“Of course,” she replied as she reached up to gently stroke his cheek. “And you know… I kinda think you’ve sort of become her hero too,” she added softly, thinking about just how close the two of them had become. It was certainly easy to see how much they cared about each other watching them interact.

Logan’s smiled shyly and shrugged. As Veronica turned back toward the TV, he placed a kiss on the top of her head. She’d have to work a little harder to make sure he accepted that well-earned title a little more enthusiastically.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Even though Logan had told her she didn’t need to dress up for the party, when Veronica found out that Heather would be wearing the dress that she’d been trying on that first night at Dillard’s, Veronica changed her mind about her own wardrobe. Veronica knew she could have worn the nice dress she’d brought home with her from school, but being surrounded by beautiful clothes all day turned out to be more tempting than she’d expected. There were several dresses that she’d been admiring since starting there, and with a legitimate excuse, she decided she really couldn’t resist a bit of a splurge—a generous employee discount certainly didn’t hurt either.

Not surprisingly, her past two evenings of being gone had not gone unnoticed by Keith. They’d crossed paths that morning before Veronica had left for her shift at Dillard’s. She’d come clean about where she’d been spending her non-working hours the last few days and was relieved when the disapproving scowl she’d expected to see didn’t surface. She also mentioned the holiday party and the fact that Logan would be stopping by to pick her up, figuring a little advanced warning might lead to a more satisfactory outcome.

Since Veronica didn’t have to spend any time deliberating over what she was going to wear, she had more time to dedicate to doing her hair and make-up. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d actually taken that much time getting ready for a night out. Keith had announced that he was home when he walked into the apartment, and she’d replied with a quick acknowledgment that she was still getting ready and would be out in a few minutes. Those few minutes had turned into at least twenty before she finally emerged from her room, taking one last glance in the mirror at the fancy curly updo she’d meticulously created.

As she walked into the main room, her dad let out a soft whistle from his spot on the couch. “Are you sure you’re going to a holiday party and not off to walk the catwalk at a fashion show?” he teased.

She rolled her eyes but couldn’t help smiling at the compliment. Her smile turned into a frown when she spotted a carry-on suitcase near the front door. “Did you pack my bags and are booting me out already?” she asked suspiciously.

Keith chuckled and shook his head. “Nope. I got a lead on a missing person case I’ve been working on and need to fly to Chicago tonight. Since you’ve found other ways to entertain yourself in your free time, I didn’t think you’d mind too much. Hopefully I’ll just be gone a night or two.”    

“I’m sure I can think of some way for you to make it up to me,” Veronica answered, slyly grinning at her dad.

“I asked Mrs. Samuels if she’d keep Backup tonight so you wouldn’t have to worry about him with the party. They’ve become good buddies with you abandoning us for Berkeley,” he continued with his own devious grin.

Before Veronica had a chance to respond, there was a rapping at the door.

“Ahhh… your gentleman caller has arrived,” Keith announced, his expression switching to intimidating dad mode.

“Be nice,” Veronica warned sternly. Keith held his hands up in a gesture of surrender as she walked toward the door.

“Hi,” Veronica greeted after opening the door and gesturing for Logan to walk in.

“Wow!” Logan exclaimed as he took her in from head to toe. “You look absolutely beautiful… not that you aren’t always beautiful, but this is… just... wow.”

Keith laughed softly at Logan’s apparent tongue-tied-ness. Veronica narrowed her eyes at her dad, causing him to try to at least appear serious again.

“Mr. Mars,” Logan directed at Keith with a friendly head nod.

“Nice to see you, Logan,” Keith responded as he stood up from his spot on the couch and extend his hand for Logan to shake.

Logan must have noticed the suitcase by the door at that point and gave Veronica a confused look.

“Dad’s catching a flight a little later,” she explained with a smug grin, wondering what Logan had initially thought.

“That doesn’t mean that your curfew doesn’t apply,” Keith interjected, causing Veronica to laugh loudly.

“Curfew? Really? If you think you’ll try giving me one of those _my roof, my rules_ ultimatums when I’ve been living on my own for the past six months, I may just have you committed.”

Keith shrugged and walked back over to his spot on the couch. “Can’t you let an old man have his delusions, Veronica?” he pleaded feebly.

“Delusions of grandeur, eh?” She let out an exaggerated put-out sigh. “Fine… what time is my curfew, Pops?”

“Well, it _is_ a Saturday night… so how about midnight?” Keith asked, looking amused that she was pretending to play along.

She gave Keith a mischievous grin and winked. “Okie dokie… You enjoy that red-eye flight and rest assured, I’ll be home by curfew.”

Keith narrowed his eyes and shook his head slightly, obviously knowing she was just messing with him.

Veronica glanced at Logan who seemed a bit nervous as he stood there just watching them. Again, she couldn’t help but wonder what was actually going through his mind.

“Enjoy your party, honey,” Keith said with a more tender expression.

“Thanks, Dad,” she replied, walking over to place a quick kiss on the top of his head. “Have a safe flight and be careful in Chicago.”

“Mm hmm,” Keith answered and then his expression became a bit mischievous. “And _Logan_ , maybe you can help me out and keep an eye on her until I get back. We both know how she likes to get into trouble when she’s not properly supervised.”

“Yes, sir,” Logan replied finally looking relaxed enough for a small smirk to appear on his lips as he nodded his agreement.

“ _Whatever_ ,” Veronica scoffed as she walked over and grabbed the small black sequined clutch on the counter that she’d dug out of her closet to use for the night. Her regular bag certainly wouldn’t have gone with the rest of her outfit. “Shall we?” she asked turning her attention to Logan.

Logan nodded and moved so he could open the door for her. “After you,” he said with a flourish of his hand. She tossed out a goodbye to her dad and then led the way out of the apartment.

Veronica stopped just outside of the apartment door, expecting a more personal greeting from Logan than he’d been comfortable giving her in front of her dad. He gave her a small grin and then held out his arm for her to link hers through. She frowned slightly, which he either didn’t notice, or was just ignoring, as she put her arm through his and let him lead her to his car.

“You really do look stunning tonight,” Logan commented while he opened the passenger door for her.

“You look pretty handsome yourself,” she replied, of course noticing just how good he looked the moment he’d walked into the apartment. Even though he’d told her not to worry about dressing up, he still had on a dress shirt with a tie and expensive looking, nicely tailored slacks. She hesitated a moment to see if he was planning to kiss her then, but he just stood there holding the door, waiting for her to get in after mumbling a soft thanks to her compliment. She tried not to act disappointed, but she couldn’t help a small sigh slipping out as she climbed in and sat down. He closed the door and then walked around the back of the SUV, opening the driver’s door and taking his own seat.

He shot her a brief smile before glancing up above his head toward the sun roof, a puzzled look forming on his face. She looked up as well and then laughed.

“Is that _mistletoe_?” she asked, eyeing the small green branch wedged into the edge of the sunroof above his head.

“How did _that_ get there?” he asked, trying unconvincingly to sound innocent.

Veronica let out an exaggerated sigh. “Well, I suppose I _have_ to kiss you now,” she told him, sounding as inconvenienced as possible.

A broad grin spread across his face as he nodded. “ _Tradition_ , you know.”

She nodded and leaned toward him, turning her head at the last minute to place a kiss on his cheek. When she pulled back, he was ineffectively trying to pout, but she could tell his amusement at her was making that difficult.

“Shall we go now?” he asked, raising an eyebrow questioningly.

Veronica’s lips quirked up into a bigger smile as she shook her head and leaned back toward him. She gently bumped her nose into his, staring into his eyes for a few seconds, a warm feeling spreading through her entire body. She took a deep breath before closing her eyes and pressing her lips against his. This was the kiss she was anticipating since they’d walked out of the apartment and he didn’t disappoint.

“I’m really starting to love mistletoe,” Logan mumbled softly when the kiss finally ended.

She couldn’t help laughing softly before nodding and pressing her lips against his again.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Veronica had a better time at the holiday party than she’d even expected. Most in attendance were younger teens and tweens closer to Heather’s age, but there’d been a few other college-age students there as well. Logan had obviously met several of them at prior events based on their familiar greetings. Logan introduced Veronica to the ones he knew, although he didn’t go as far as to call her his girlfriend when doing so. She tried not to dwell on the fact that it bothered her since they hadn’t actually talked about their official status. She’d come to terms with the fact that she wanted this to be more than just a Christmas break trist, but she didn’t really know how to broach the subject with Logan, or how he was feeling about things. At least all of the small affectionate gestures Logan made while they were there—holding her hand, teasingly soft cheek kisses, tenderly whispered compliments while they were dancing—certainly helped put her mind at ease when it would start wandering to negative thoughts.  

After almost two hours of dancing and enjoying all of the delicious food, they’d dropped Heather off at her house and then headed back to Neptune. Logan had asked, almost shyly, if Veronica wanted to come over to his place before he took her home. She’d just assumed that they would end up at his condo after the party, but obviously he hadn’t been so certain. _Had he thought I was serious about the curfew?_

Once they parked in his garage, she used the pretense of waiting for him to walk around and open her door so she could sneakily grab the mistletoe that was still stuck up by the sunroof. She slipped it into her clutch, not yet sure what she was going to do with it, but sure she could come up with something creative. Logan seemed uncharacteristically quiet as they walked into the condo, and she wondered what was going through his head.

“Thanks for inviting me to go tonight,” she told him as they entered the kitchen. “I had a lot of fun.”

“I think you’re the one who deserves thanks for agreeing to come. It was definitely a hundred times better with you there.”

“Only a _hundred_?” she teased, narrowing her eyes challengingly.

Logan chuckled and shook his head. “Honestly, you make everything a _million_ times better when you’re around, but I didn’t want to over-inflate your ego.”

Veronica laughed at that. “Ah… but flattery gets you everywhere… so there are benefits too.”

Logan smirked and nodded. He’d stopped near her, leaning as he frequently did against the kitchen counter, watching her intently.

Even with the friendly teasing, it still feeled like something was amiss. “You’ve been sort of quiet since we dropped Heather off.”   

Logan shrugged and looked down at his feet. “Just thinking… we um… we’ve never been great at talking things out… and well,” he paused and let out a sigh as he looked up at her for a second and then back down at his feet. “I really wanted to introduce you as my girlfriend tonight, but I wasn’t sure how you would feel about that,” he quickly admitted uneasily.

Veronica couldn’t help the small chuckle that bubbled out. Logan tipped his head enough so he could look up at her with a guarded expression, clearly uncertain about her reaction. Veronica took a step closer to him so that there were only a few inches between them.

“I spent half the night obsessing about why you _didn’t_ ,” she confessed, biting nervously on her lower lip.

Logan’s eyes opened wider as the corner of his mouth quirked up in a small grin. “I um… I wasn’t sure… after your big platonic speech the other day, but then last night… I just wasn’t sure how serious you actually wanted to be.”

“I know. I didn’t mean to send you mixed signals,” she told him, working up the courage to be honest about how she was feeling. “And you’re right… communication hasn’t always been our strong suit.”

“Obviously something must have caused you to have second thoughts after our date, though. Maybe we should talk about that.”

Veronica let out a soft sigh and nodded. “I was worried about how things would be when I had to go back to Berkeley—”

Logan furrowed his brows before he interrupted her. “Do you not trust me enough to believe we could have a long distance relationship?”

“What? No!” Veronica quickly responded. She hadn’t even considered that he might take her hesitation that way. “No, I’ve…” she paused and sighed again. “I’ve been having a hard time with feeling homesick there... and I was worried it would be so much worse missing you too.”

Logan let out what sounded like a relieved sigh as he pushed off from the counter and closed the remaining distance between them. He rested his hands gently on her hips as he smiled tenderly at her. “I’m always just a phone call away, Veronica. And I’m pretty sure that even my little shopping spree at Dillard’s hasn’t depleted my inheritance so much that I couldn’t hop on a plane and come see you.”

Veronica wrapped her arms around his neck. “I wouldn’t want to be a _burden_ ,” she replied, tilting her head to the side coyly.

Logan chuckled softly and moved one hand so he could carefully brush a few stray hairs off her forehead that had escaped from their previously secured placement. “You’re a burden I’d never complain about carrying,” he told her sincerely, and then his lips quirked up into a mischievous grin. “Particularly since you’re so _tiny_.”

Veronica’s eyebrows shot up in disapproval, which only caused Logan to laugh a bit more as he quickly scooped her up in a bridal hold and spun her around. “See… easy burden to carry.”

“And _where_ do you plan to carry me?” she asked him, her voice taking on almost a breathless coquettish tone.

Logan leaned his head closer to hers so their noses bumped gently and she could feel his warm breath on her lips. “I don’t want to be too presumptuous,” he replied, his voice growing more husky than it was seconds before.  

Veronica tilted her head so she could kiss him. She didn’t try to hide how much she wanted him in the way she kissed him, pouring all her desires and feelings into the kiss. He seemed to be on exactly the same page based on the way he responded to her advance. She barely even registered that he was moving until he reached the stairs. She felt a little bad about him carrying her so far, but he didn’t seem to be struggling at all, so she didn’t protest.

When he finally reached his bedroom, he gently put her down on the floor at the foot of his bed. He stepped back slightly but remained close enough that his hands were still resting on her hips. It seemed as though he was silently questioning whether or not to continue. Veronica kept her gaze firmly locked with his as she reached back and unzipped her dress, letting the soft fabric slip off her arms and fall in a pool around her feet. Logan sucked in a sharp breath as he seemed to take a second to appreciate the sight of her. If how he was looking at her was any indication, any doubts he may have had were now  wiped away. He lifted her carefully and lowered her onto the bed, easing himself down so he could hover above her. She felt him suck in a sharp breath as she slid her fingers under his shirt, tracing them up along his side, and then back down to his navel, enjoying the feeling of his taught stomach muscles. It hadn’t escaped her attention that he had looked even more fit than when she’d left Neptune, and she was easily able to confirm that was true with her own exploration of his body. She grabbed the edge of his shirt and tugged on it. Logan shifted enough to help her remove it, giving her a chance to see even more of his nicely defined torso. He playfully quirked an eyebrow at her, obviously amused at the way she was ogling him.

“Would you like me to stand up and do a few twirls for you?” he asked with a smirk.

She shook her head and grabbed him by the neck. “Nope… I’ve always appreciated tactile over visual stimulation,” she replied breathily as she pulled him back toward her.

Logan blew out a shaky breath and nodded. “Me too,” he whispered as she felt his hand slide up her outer thigh. A second later, his mouth found the spot on her neck that always drove her insane. She couldn’t believe how amazing he could make her feel and he still hadn’t even removed his pants. She had no idea how she was going to survive being over four hundred miles away with fresh reminders of exactly what she was missing. The only thing she could think of at that moment in time was to vow to enjoy him as much as possible between now and when she’d have to go back to school. She was definitely glad that her dad was out of town for the next few days and felt a little guilty hoping it would take him even longer than he expected to track down his missing person.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Veronica wasn’t sure how much time had passed since Logan had carried her up to his bedroom, but every minute had been well spent getting intimately reaquainted with each other. They were now lying naked together, curled up under his very luxurious sheets. Her head was resting on his chest and Logan was lightly tracing indistinguishable patterns on her back.

“I don’t want to go back,” Veronica mumbled out quietly.

“I won’t complain if you stay the night,” Logan answered softly. “I promise I won’t tell your dad you didn’t make your midnight curfew.”

“No,” she replied as she found enough energy to push up and look him in the eyes. “I mean Berkeley.”

Logan’s eyebrows furrowed slightly, obviously not sure how to respond to what she’d just said.

“I don’t want to go back after the break, I want to stay in Neptune,” she clarified.

Logan looked at her tenderly and reached up to stroke her hair. “Not that I’d _ever_ complain about you coming home, but are you sure that’s what you really want to do?”    

“I don’t want to run anymore and I feel like the only reason I went there was because I thought it was easier to just escape from everything that had ever happened in Neptune.”

“Well given everything you’ve been through, that was a pretty understandable reason.” He paused and looked a bit conflicted. “How would your dad handle that news?”

Veronica laughed softly. She could imagine that Logan was worried that her dad might blame him for her sudden change of plans. “Well, he wasn’t thrilled about my decision to leave Hearst in the first place.” Logan seemed to relax a bit at that bit of information. “Although there is the chance that he’ll not be so happy to lose his bachelor pad status when I move back in.”

“Well,” Logan started with a gleam in his eye, “we could rectify that by you just moving in here.”

Veronica hadn’t expected that at all and she was sure the look on her face gave that away. She was glad to see that Logan at least didn’t take her reaction the wrong way. He was still smiling at her, but in more of an amused way than anything else. Of course he always did love making her speechless. “Let’s not ruin his Christmas,” she countered, recovering from the shock and moving on to bantering instead. She wasn’t even sure if he was only teasing with the comment anyway.

“You’re just hoping he might still get you that pony and don’t want to ruin your chances, don’t you?” he volleyed back with a smirk.

“I have a feeling this just might be my year,” she replied back with a childish grin.

Logan laughed and pressed a kiss to her lips. “I know that proposition was probably a bit too much, especially lying here naked in my bed… but it’s something you can think about. And after a month or so of being back full time with your dad, maybe you’ll want to reconsider.”

Veronica bit nervously on her lip and then nodded in reply. “I’ll keep that in mind,” she replied, a hint of shyness coming through in her tone.

A wolfish grin flashed across his face before he unexpectedly rolled their bodies so she was on her back under him. “Pony or no pony, this is definitely turning out to be _my_ best Christmas ever,” he whispered huskily before capturing her lips in a searing kiss.  

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

It had been a week since classes had let out for summer break, and Veronica had less than five days left before she’d be starting her second internship with the FBI. A small smile ghosted across her lips thinking about how different things were going into this summer than the last. She’d been recommended by one of the agents she worked closely with in Virginia for an internship at the LA field office, so she didn’t have to travel across the country this time. And instead of sharing a small cramped dorm room with a complete stranger, she’d be sharing a slightly more spacious one bedroom LA apartment with someone she knew intimately.

Logan let out an exaggerated huff as he placed a moving box on the bed and then collapsed onto his back next to it, clearly feigning exhaustion. Veronica rolled her eyes and closed the dresser drawer she’d been putting causal clothes into, heading over to determine what was in the box he’d just brought in.

“You do remember we’re _sharing_ this place, right?” Logan teased as he glanced over at the small closet that she’d already mostly filled with her clothes.

Logan had scored an internship at an advertising agency in LA, and despite some disapproval from Veronica’s dad, they’d decided to give cohabitation a trial run over the summer. It wasn’t like they hadn’t already been spending a tremendous amount of time together since she transferred back to Hearst after Christmas, but for Keith the reality of their formal living arrangement was a bit hard to accept. Veronica hadn’t yet had the heart to tell him that she was planning to move into Logan’s condo after they finished their summer internships.

“There’s a coat closet by the front door. I’m sure your stuff could fit in there,” she replied with a sly grin.

“Right,” Logan replied, furrowing his bows as if he was deep in thought. “ _You’re_ the one who balked at the two-thousand square foot place, so _I’m_ the one who gets to use the coat closet.” His lips curling up into an adoring grin completely invalidated his ability to sound annoyed with her.

They’d made a lot of good progress on their relationship over the past six months. They still had occasional disagreements, but they seemed to have gotten much better at working through them. She’d actually been the one to suggest they share an apartment in LA, and given it was her idea, she’d insisted on paying a portion of the rent, which was how they ended up in a much smaller apartment than Logan would likely have preferred. Although any of his protests about the place they ended up renting came across as good-natured teasing, rather than actual dissatisfaction. They’d been lucky enough to find one that came furnished and she’d convinced him the trade off for that was worth accepting the smaller square footage. She’d also argued that if they were both spending most of their waking hours at their internships, they really only needed a bed to crash together on.

Veronica could see Logan watching her out of the corner of her eye as she pulled the lid off the box to determine where its contents needed to go. She smiled as she pulled out the small black sequined clutch that she’d last used when they went to Heather’s holiday party together. Logan had warned her before she’d packed that there may be a couple of black-tie affairs that he’d need to attend, and he’d hoped that she’d be able to be his plus-one for those.

“Mmm… I remember that,” Logan said sentimentally as he took the clutch out of her hand, “and how gorgeous you looked that night.”

“Flattery is _not_ going to get you more closet space,” Veronica teased as she snatched the clutch back out of his hands. She accidently flipped the small flap open and laughed as a small dried twig fell out.

“Is that—” Logan started to ask before Veronica interjected.

“Mistletoe!” she announced as she picked the small piece up, grinning deviously at Logan.

“I wondered what had happened to that piece of mistletoe that was in the Rover,” he told her as he shook his head slightly. “I should have known my favorite little blonde thief absconded with it.”

“You _did_ say mistletoe was magical. Maybe it just _magically_ transported itself into my purse,” she suggested with a sly grin.

“Hmmm… well, I’m certainly not going to argue about how magical it is, especially after the way my Christmas turned out.”

Veronica's expression became more lascivious as she picked up the mistletoe and climbed onto the bed, straddling Logan’s lap. “Can’t break tradition now can we?” she purred sensually as she stretched out her arm and held the small twig above her head.

Logan’s eyes darkened with lust as he shook his head and pushed himself up to capture her lips in a searing kiss.

“Definitely _magical_ ,” Veronica murmured with a breathy moan moments later as Logan flipped her onto her back, a predatory grin spreading across his lips.  

**_A/N - Thank you all for reading and I hope you all enjoyed this little LoVe Holiday story. Please take a minute to let me know what you thought of it-comments make wonderful holiday gifts! It was hard not to write more for this version of them, but I really hadn’t intended on it being as long as it turned out either when I started out. Happy holidays to all of the wonderful Marshmallows out there!_ **

  
  



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